Sec. 42-158. Test procedures.

Use the following procedures to determine compliance with subsection (c) of section 42-152:

(a) Words. To count the number of words in the contract, proceed as follows:

(1) Count every word used in the text of the contract.

(2) Do not count words or numerals used in headings, captions, signature lines, graphs or charts.

(3) Do not count single words or phrases used to identify the information required in a fill-in section of a contract, such as “Name” or “Address”.

(4) Count as one word a contraction, hyphenated word, numeral, symbol, or abbreviation.

(5) Do not count words which are exempt under section 42-156.

(b) Sentences. A sequence of words is a “sentence”, if:

(1) It expresses a complete thought; and

(2) It contains a subject and a verb, including the implied subject “you”; and

(3) It ends with a period. If it is an item in a list, it may end with a semicolon. If it is an introduction to a list, it may end with a colon.

(c) Syllables. A “syllable” is a unit of spoken language consisting of one or more letters of a word, as the word is divided by any dictionary. To count the number of syllables, proceed as follows:

(1) If there is more than one acceptable pronunciation for a word, use the one having fewer syllables.

(2) Count abbreviations, numerals, and symbols as one-syllable words.

(d) Paragraphs. A sequence of words is a “paragraph”, if:

(1) It consists of one or more sentences; and

(2) It starts on a new line; and

(3) It is separated by at least three-sixteenths of an inch of blank space from the text immediately preceding and following it.

(e) Lists. A sequence of words is a “list”, if:

(1) Each item in the sequence is introduced by a numeral or letter; and

(2) Each item in the sequence starts on a new line.

(f) Length of line. (1) A printed text line does not exceed sixty-five characters if the distance between the inside left and inside right margins does not exceed the width of two and one-half alphabets of the type face being used.

(2) A text line typed at ten characters per inch does not exceed sixty-five characters if the length of the line does not exceed six and one-half inches.

(3) A text line typed at twelve characters per inch does not exceed sixty-five characters if the length of the line does not exceed five and one-half inches.

(g) Average number of words per sentence. Count the total number of words and sentences in the contract, as described in this section. Then divide the number of words by the number of sentences. The result is the average number of words per sentence.

(h) Average number of words per paragraph. Count the total number of words and paragraphs in the contract, as described in this section. Then divide the number of words by the number of paragraphs. The result is the average number of words per paragraph.

(i) Average number of syllables per word. Count the total number of syllables and words in the contract, as described in this section. Then divide the number of syllables by the number of words. The result is the average number of syllables per word.

(j) Special procedures for list formats. To count sentences and paragraphs if a list format is used, proceed as follows:

(1) Examine the introduction to the list and each item in the list to see if it is a sentence or a paragraph.

(2) Do not count as part of any sentence the words “and”, “or”, “if”, “if and only if”, or “then”, if they are used to link the items of the list to each other or to the introduction.

(3) If each item in the list is a sentence, count each as a sentence. If any item is not a sentence, count the entire list as part of the sentence and paragraph containing the introduction. Do not count an item in a list as either a sentence or a paragraph if the subject or verb appears in the introduction.

(4) If each item in the list is a sentence but the introduction is not, count the introduction as part of the sentence containing the first item in the list.

(5) If each item in the list is a sentence and, in addition, each item is separated by at least three-sixteenths of an inch of blank space from the sentences immediately preceding and following it, count each item as a paragraph.

(P.A. 79-532, S. 8.)