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RALEIGH, N.C. A legislative proposal to stop requiring newspaper notices for public hearings was shelved after opposition from North Carolina publishers.

Rep. Paul Stam of Wake County said Thursday he would stop trying to pass his statewide bill and allow about a dozen communities to experiment with Internet-based notices. A House judiciary committee takes up the local bill on Monday.

Stam's proposal would have allowed local governments to stop paying for newspaper advertisements announcing public hearings. Stam said governments would save money by posting the notices on their own Web sites or sending e-mail alerts.

Newspaper publishers countered that many find out about upcoming government action by happening onto the ads as they flip through their paper.