The Outdoor Advertising Act provides for the Department of Transportation to regulate advertising displays, as defined, within view of public highways. The act exempts from its provisions advertising displays used exclusively for specified purposes, including advertising displays to advertise the sale, lease, or exchange of real property upon which the advertising display is placed.

This bill would exempt from the act an advertising display used exclusively to display noncommercial public health, emergency, and safety messages from the County of San Joaquin on public property and equipment owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin in conformance with state law, federal law, regulations, and agreements.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of San Joaquin.

The Outdoor Advertising Act provides for the Department of Transportation to regulate advertising displays, as defined, within view of public highways. The act exempts from its provisions advertising displays used exclusively for specified purposes, including advertising displays to advertise the sale, lease, or exchange of real property upon which the advertising display is placed.

This bill would exempt from the act an advertising display used exclusively to display noncommercial public health, emergency, and safety messages from the County of San Joaquin on public property and equipment owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin in conformance with state law, federal law, regulations, and agreements.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of San Joaquin.

The Outdoor Advertising Act provides for the Department of Transportation to regulate advertising displays, as defined, within view of public highways. The act authorizes displays on property zoned commercial or industrial, as specified. exempts from its provisions advertising displays used exclusively for specified purposes, including advertising displays to advertise the sale, lease, or exchange of real property upon which the advertising display is placed.

This bill would authorize the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, message centers, as defined, that promote public health and safety, as specified. exempt from the act an advertising display used exclusively to display noncommercial public health, emergency, and safety messages from the County of San Joaquin on public property and equipment owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin in conformance with state law, federal law, regulations, and agreements.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of San Joaquin.

The Outdoor Advertising Act provides for the Department of Transportation to regulate advertising displays, as defined, within view of public highways. The act authorizes displays on property zoned commercial or industrial, as specified.

This bill would authorize the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays message centers, as defined, that promote public health and safety. safety, as specified.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for County of San Joaquin.

The Outdoor Advertising Act provides for the Department of Transportation to regulate advertising displays, as defined, within view of public highways. The act authorizes displays on property zoned commercial or industrial, as specified.

This bill would authorize displays on public property for noncommercial public messages and announcements, as specified.

CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS

CSA1 Bill Id:AB 476

Author:(Villapudua)

As Amended Ver:September 7, 2023

Majority vote

SUMMARY

This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the County, digital displays that promote public health and safety.

Senate Amendments

1. Clarify and narrow this bill by making its provisions subject to the Outdoor Advertising Act (Act).
2. Require that the advertising display be located on public property and be owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin.
3. Provide that the advertising display may show only noncommercial public health, emergency, and safety messages from the County of San Joaquin.
4. Make technical and conforming changes.

COMMENTS

Background.

The September 7, 2023, amendments, which were proposed by Caltrans, clarify and narrow the bill by exempting from the Act an advertising display used exclusively to display noncommercial public health, emergency, and safety messages from the County of San Joaquin on public property and equipment owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin, as described. It should be noted that these amendments are consistent with the author’s intent when the bill passed the Assembly.

A combination of state and federal requirements govern the placement and operation of all outdoor advertising in California. The state's OAA regulates the size, illumination, orientation, and location of advertising displays adjacent to and within specified distances of interstate or primary highways. The OAA, with some exceptions, specifically prohibits the placement of any advertising display on property adjacent to a section of landscaped freeway.

State law generally does not apply to "on premise" advertising displays, including those that advertise the sale, lease, or exchange of property upon which it is placed and those that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or the goods produced or sold on the property. The regulation of "on-premise" displays is a local matter, with the exception of a few safety requirements outlined in state law. Municipal billboard regulations may also be stricter than OAA standards. Regulations may take the form of zoning laws or sign permits, for example.

For instance, if a county placed a billboard or message center on hospital property, the county can advertise the availability of health care services. Whether the advertising could also include other county services not provided at the hospital, such as voting service or mosquito abatement, is less clear. AB 476 makes it clear that San Joaquin County can do this.

According to the Author

According to the author, "An essential role of governmental organizations is to promote public safety and inform the public of emergent information to ensure effective county operations. With the increased affordability of digital billboards and the simplicity with which timely messaging can be displayed on them when the display can by dynamic instead of static, erecting a digital display is among the most cost-effective ways that a government entity can provide critical local information to the public including but not limited to public service advisories; campaigns to raise awareness and provide information about important issues to the community; promotion of County services available to the public; informational announcements about County government; promotion of county-sponsored events; and local and regional emergency advisories and alerts."

The author states that "AB 476 will enable San Joaquin residents to have access to the most current public safety and public health information available in order to ensure the wellbeing of our community."

Arguments in Support

The San Joaquin Board of Supervisors writes, "Public messaging campaigns utilizing billboard displays are limited to the use of privately owned billboards that must be leased at high rates, with long contract lead times. This impedes local government's ability to quickly spread emergent messages and inform the community of time-sensitive information. AB 476 exempts from the OAA an advertising display used exclusively by the County to display noncommercial public health, emergency, and safety messages under specified conditions consistent with state law, federal laws, regulations, and agreements.”

Arguments in Opposition

Scenic Los Angeles writes in opposition, "AB 476 is far too broadly worded and it will set a bad precedent for other counties. Under this bill, almost any message that could even remotely be seen as promoting some aspect of public health and safety could go onto a new digital sign on public property, be it commercial or noncommercial, private or governmental, true or bogus.”

FISCAL COMMENTS

This bill was keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel before Senate amendments.

VOTES:

ASM GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION: 21-0-1

YES: Santiago, Lackey, Aguiar-Curry, Berman, Bryan, Cervantes, Megan Dahle, Davies, Garcia, Gipson, Jones-Sawyer, Mathis, McCarty, McKinnor, Jim Patterson, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Robert Rivas, Blanca Rubio, Ta, Villapudua

ABS, ABST OR NV: Low

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0-2

YES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Juan Carrillo, Wendy Carrillo, Cervantes, Chen, Connolly, Megan Dahle, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Friedman, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Holden, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mathis, McCarty, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Jim Patterson, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Reyes, Luz Rivas, Robert Rivas, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Ward, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Wood, Rendon

ABS, ABST OR NV: Hart, Zbur

UPDATED

VERSION: September 7, 2023

CONSULTANT: Eric Johnson / G.O. / (916) 319-2531 FN: 0002215

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 476

Author: Villapudua (D)

Amended: 9/7/23 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE: 16-0, 7/11/23

AYES: Gonzalez, Niello, Allen, Archuleta, Becker, Blakespear, Cortese, Dahle, Durazo, Laird, Limón, McGuire, Newman, Nguyen, Seyarto, Umberg

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/31/23 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Outdoor advertising displays: exemptions

SOURCE: Author

DIGEST:

This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays that promote public health and safety.

Senate Floor Amendments of 9/7/23 clarify and narrow the bill by 1) making its provisions subject to the Outdoor Advertising Act, 2) requiring that the advertising display be located on public property and be owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin, and 3) specifying that the messages come from the County of San Joaquin.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Provides, under the Outdoor Advertising Act (OAA), for the regulation by the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) of an advertising display, as defined, within view of public highways. The OAA regulates the placement of an off-premises advertising display along highways that generally advertises business conducted or services rendered or goods produced or sold at a location other than the property where the display is located.
2. Provides that the OAA generally does not apply to on-premise advertising displays, which include those advertising the sale of the property upon which it is placed or that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or goods produced or sold on the property. Local governments regulate on premise displays, except for certain safety requirements.
3. Defines “on-premises advertising displays” as any structure, housing, sign, device, figure, statuary, painting, display, message placard, or other contrivance, or any part thereof, that has been designed, constructed, created, intended, or engineered to have a useful life of 15 years or more, and intended or used to advertise, or to provide data or information in the nature of advertising, for any of the following purposes:
   1. To designate, identify, or indicate the name or business of the owner or occupant of the premises upon which the advertising display is located.
   2. To advertise the business conducted, services available or rendered, or the goods produced, sold, or available for sale, upon the property where the advertising display has been lawfully erected.
4. Prohibits any advertising display from being placed or maintained on property adjacent to a section of a freeway that has been landscaped if the advertising display is designed to be viewed primarily by persons traveling on the main-traveled way of the landscaped freeway. There are 4,300 centerline miles of freeway, statewide. 1,400 of those miles are landscaped.
5. Provides for limited exemptions to the prohibition on advertising along system and landscaped freeways, including exemptions for signs advertising the property’s sale or lease, signs designating the premises or its owner, and signs advertising goods or services manufactured or produced on the property itself.
6. States that, for purposes of the OAA, “message center” is an advertising display where the message is changed more than once every two minutes, but no more than once every four seconds. (Business and Professions Code §5490.5)
7. Establishes, by contractual agreement, Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control (OAC) program, which has restrictions similar to California’s OAA program, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state shall lose 10% of its federal highway funding.

This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to, on property owned by the county, construct and operate digital displays that promote public health and safety.

Comments

Recent Amendments. The September 7, 2023 amendments, which are proposed by Caltrans, clarify and narrow the bill by 1) making its provisions subject to the Outdoor Advertising Act, 2) requiring that the advertising display be located on public property and be owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin, and 3) specifying that the messages come from the County of San Joaquin.

Author’s Statement. According to the author, "An essential role of governmental organizations is to promote public safety and inform the public of emergent information to ensure effective county operations. With the increased affordability of digital billboards and the simplicity with which timely messaging can be displayed on them when the display can by dynamic instead of static, erecting a digital display is among the most cost-effective ways that a government entity can provide critical local information to the public including but not limited to public service advisories; campaigns to raise awareness and provide information about important issues to the community; promotion of County services available to the public; informational announcements about County government; promotion of county-sponsored events; and local and regional emergency advisories and alerts. AB 476 will enable San Joaquin residents to have access to the most current public safety and public health information available in order to ensure the wellbeing of our community.”

Already Allowed, Kinda. Current law allows on-premise advertising when it promotes goods or services provided at the premise. If a county wanted to put a billboard or message center onto a county hospital, the county could advertise the availability of health care services. Whether the advertising could also include other county services not provided at the hospital, such as voting service or mosquito abatement, is less clear. This bill makes it clear that San Joaquin County could do so.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No

SUPPORT: (Verified 9/8/23)

County of San Joaquin
San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors

OPPOSITION: (Verified 9/8/23)

Scenic Los Angeles-Scenic America

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/31/23

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Juan Carrillo, Wendy Carrillo, Cervantes, Chen, Connolly, Megan Dahle, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Friedman, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Holden, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mathis, McCarty, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Jim Patterson, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Reyes, Luz Rivas, Robert Rivas, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Ward, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Wood, Rendon

NO VOTE RECORDED: Hart, Zbur

Prepared by: Randy Chinn / TRANS. / (916) 651-4121

9/11/23 12:01:18

**** END ****

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 476

Author: Villapudua (D)

Amended: 9/7/23 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE: 16-0, 7/11/23

AYES: Gonzalez, Niello, Allen, Archuleta, Becker, Blakespear, Cortese, Dahle, Durazo, Laird, Limón, McGuire, Newman, Nguyen, Seyarto, Umberg

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/31/23 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Outdoor advertising displays: exemptions

SOURCE: Author

DIGEST:

This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays that promote public health and safety.

Senate Floor Amendments of 9/7/23 clarify and narrow the bill by 1) making its provisions subject to the Outdoor Advertising Act, 2) requiring that the advertising display be located on public property and be owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin, and 3) specifying that the messages come from the County of San Joaquin.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Provides, under the Outdoor Advertising Act (OAA), for the regulation by the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) of an advertising display, as defined, within view of public highways. The OAA regulates the placement of an off-premises advertising display along highways that generally advertises business conducted or services rendered or goods produced or sold at a location other than the property where the display is located.
2. Provides that the OAA generally does not apply to on-premise advertising displays, which include those advertising the sale of the property upon which it is placed or that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or goods produced or sold on the property. Local governments regulate on premise displays, except for certain safety requirements.
3. Defines “on-premises advertising displays” as any structure, housing, sign, device, figure, statuary, painting, display, message placard, or other contrivance, or any part thereof, that has been designed, constructed, created, intended, or engineered to have a useful life of 15 years or more, and intended or used to advertise, or to provide data or information in the nature of advertising, for any of the following purposes:
   1. To designate, identify, or indicate the name or business of the owner or occupant of the premises upon which the advertising display is located.
   2. To advertise the business conducted, services available or rendered, or the goods produced, sold, or available for sale, upon the property where the advertising display has been lawfully erected.
4. Prohibits any advertising display from being placed or maintained on property adjacent to a section of a freeway that has been landscaped if the advertising display is designed to be viewed primarily by persons traveling on the main-traveled way of the landscaped freeway. There are 4,300 centerline miles of freeway, statewide. 1,400 of those miles are landscaped.
5. Provides for limited exemptions to the prohibition on advertising along system and landscaped freeways, including exemptions for signs advertising the property’s sale or lease, signs designating the premises or its owner, and signs advertising goods or services manufactured or produced on the property itself.
6. States that, for purposes of the OAA, “message center” is an advertising display where the message is changed more than once every two minutes, but no more than once every four seconds. (Business and Professions Code §5490.5)
7. Establishes, by contractual agreement, Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control (OAC) program, which has restrictions similar to California’s OAA program, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state shall lose 10% of its federal highway funding.

This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to, on property owned by the county, construct and operate digital displays that promote public health and safety.

Comments

Recent Amendments. The September 7, 2023 amendments, which are proposed by Caltrans, clarify and narrow the bill by 1) making its provisions subject to the Outdoor Advertising Act, 2) requiring that the advertising display be located on public property and be owned and operated by the County of San Joaquin, and 3) specifying that the messages come from the County of San Joaquin.

Author’s Statement. According to the author, "An essential role of governmental organizations is to promote public safety and inform the public of emergent information to ensure effective county operations. With the increased affordability of digital billboards and the simplicity with which timely messaging can be displayed on them when the display can by dynamic instead of static, erecting a digital display is among the most cost-effective ways that a government entity can provide critical local information to the public including but not limited to public service advisories; campaigns to raise awareness and provide information about important issues to the community; promotion of County services available to the public; informational announcements about County government; promotion of county-sponsored events; and local and regional emergency advisories and alerts. AB 476 will enable San Joaquin residents to have access to the most current public safety and public health information available in order to ensure the wellbeing of our community.”

Already Allowed, Kinda. Current law allows on-premise advertising when it promotes goods or services provided at the premise. If a county wanted to put a billboard or message center onto a county hospital, the county could advertise the availability of health care services. Whether the advertising could also include other county services not provided at the hospital, such as voting service or mosquito abatement, is less clear. This bill makes it clear that San Joaquin County could do so.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No

SUPPORT: (Verified 9/8/23)

County of San Joaquin
San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors

OPPOSITION: (Verified 9/8/23)

Scenic Los Angeles-Scenic America

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/31/23

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Juan Carrillo, Wendy Carrillo, Cervantes, Chen, Connolly, Megan Dahle, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Friedman, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Holden, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mathis, McCarty, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Jim Patterson, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Reyes, Luz Rivas, Robert Rivas, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Ward, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Wood, Rendon

NO VOTE RECORDED: Hart, Zbur

Prepared by: Randy Chinn / TRANS. / (916) 651-4121

9/8/23 16:25:30

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION

Senator Lena Gonzalez, Chair

2023 - 2024 Regular

Bill No: AB 476 Hearing Date: 7/11/2023

SUBJECT: Digital displays: public health and safety: the County of San Joaquin

DIGEST: This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays that promote public health and safety.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Provides, under the Outdoor Advertising Act (OAA), for the regulation by the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) of an advertising display, as defined, within view of public highways. The OAA regulates the placement of an off-premises advertising display along highways that generally advertises business conducted or services rendered or goods produced or sold at a location other than the property where the display is located.
2. Provides that the OAA generally does not apply to on-premise advertising displays, which include those advertising the sale of the property upon which it is placed or that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or goods produced or sold on the property. Local governments regulate on premise displays, except for certain safety requirements.
3. Defines “on-premises advertising displays” as any structure, housing, sign, device, figure, statuary, painting, display, message placard, or other contrivance, or any part thereof, that has been designed, constructed, created, intended, or engineered to have a useful life of 15 years or more, and intended or used to advertise, or to provide data or information in the nature of advertising, for any of the following purposes:
   1. To designate, identify, or indicate the name or business of the owner or occupant of the premises upon which the advertising display is located.
   2. To advertise the business conducted, services available or rendered, or the goods produced, sold, or available for sale, upon the property where the advertising display has been lawfully erected.
4. Prohibits any advertising display from being placed or maintained on property adjacent to a section of a freeway that has been landscaped if the advertising display is designed to be viewed primarily by persons traveling on the main-traveled way of the landscaped freeway. There are 4,300 centerline miles of freeway, statewide. 1,400 of those miles are landscaped.
5. Provides for limited exemptions to the prohibition on advertising along system and landscaped freeways, including exemptions for signs advertising the property’s sale or lease, signs designating the premises or its owner, and signs advertising goods or services manufactured or produced on the property itself.
6. States for purposes of the OAA, “message center” is an advertising display where the message is changed more than once every two minutes, but no more than once every four seconds. (Business and Professions Code §5490.5)
7. Establishes, by contractual agreement, Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control (OAC) program, which has restrictions similar to California’s OAA program, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state shall lose 10% of its federal highway funding.

This bill authorizes the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays that promote public health and safety.

COMMENTS:

Author’s Statement. "An essential role of governmental organizations is to promote public safety and inform the public of emergent information to ensure effective county operations. With the increased affordability of digital billboards and the simplicity with which timely messaging can be displayed on them when the display can by dynamic instead of static, erecting a digital display is among the most cost-effective ways that a government entity can provide critical local information to the public including but not limited to public service advisories; campaigns to raise awareness and provide information about important issues to the community; promotion of County services available to the public; informational announcements about County government; promotion of county-sponsored events; and local and regional emergency advisories and alerts. AB 476 will enable San Joaquin residents to have access to the most current public safety and public health information available in order to ensure the wellbeing of our community.”

Already Allowed, Kinda. Current law allows on-premise advertising when it promotes goods or services provided at the premise. If a county wanted to put a billboard or message center onto a county hospital, the county could advertise the availability of health care services. Whether the advertising could also include other county services not provided at the hospital, such as voting service or mosquito abatement, is less clear. This bill makes it clear that San Joaquin County could do so.

Clarifying and Technical Amendments. The recent report by the Federal Highway Administration raising concerns about California’s outdoor advertising program highlights the need to ensure that new billboards are compliant with California’s Outdoor Advertising Act (OAA) and the federal OAC. The outdoor advertising industry has raised concerns that this bill potentially violates the OAA, though the author and sponsor have not expressed any interest in doing so. To ensure there is no inadvertent violation the author and committee may wish to consider clarifying that the authority given to San Joaquin County is subject to compliance with the OAA and the OAC. Also, as a technical matter the term “digital display” isn’t defined in the statute. The author and committee may wish to consider using instead the term “message center” and moving the new code section to Chapter 2.5 (beginning with Section 5490) where message centers are discussed.

Related Legislation:

None

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Fiscal Com.: Local:

POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on Wednesday,

July 6, 2023.)

SUPPORT:

County of San Joaquin
San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors

OPPOSITION:

Scenic Los Angeles, a Chapter of Scenic America

-- END --

ASSEMBLY THIRD READING

ATR Bill Id:AB 476

Author:(Villapudua)

As Amended Ver:April 20, 2023

Majority vote

SUMMARY

This bill would authorize the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays that promote public health and safety. This bill makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for County of San Joaquin.

Major Provisions

EXISTING LAW:

1. Provides, under the Outdoor Advertising Act (OAA), for the regulation by the Department of Transportation (Caltrans or department) of an advertising display, as defined, within view of public highways. The OAA regulates the placement of an off-premises advertising display along highways that generally advertises business conducted or services rendered or goods produced or sold at a location other than the property where the display is located.
2. Provides that the OAA generally does not apply to on-premise advertising displays, which include those advertising the sale of the property upon which it is placed or that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or goods produced or sold on the property. Local governments regulate on premise displays, except for certain safety requirements.
3. Provides, "on-premises advertising displays" means any structure, housing, sign, device, figure, statuary, painting, display, message placard, or other contrivance, or any part thereof, that has been designed, constructed, created, intended, or engineered to have a useful life of 15 years or more, and intended or used to advertise, or to provide data or information in the nature of advertising, for any of the following purposes:
   1. To designate, identify, or indicate the name or business of the owner or occupant of the premises upon which the advertising display is located.
   2. To advertise the business conducted, services available or rendered, or the goods produced, sold, or available for sale, upon the property where the advertising display has been lawfully erected.
4. Provides that on-premise message centers visible to traffic from any interstate or primary highway shall meet all of the following requirements:
   1. The display may not include any message that is in motion or appears to be in motion.
   2. The display may not change the intensity of illumination.
   3. The display may not change the message more than once every four seconds.
5. States for purposes of the OAA, "message center" is an advertising display where the message is changed more than once every two minutes, but no more than once every four seconds. (California Code, Business and Professions Section 5490.5)
6. Prohibits any advertising display from being placed or maintained on property adjacent to a section of a freeway that has been landscaped if the advertising display is designed to be viewed primarily by persons traveling on the main-traveled way of the landscaped freeway. There are 4,300 centerline miles of freeway, statewide. 1,400 of those miles are landscaped. Provides for limited exemptions to the prohibition on advertising along system and landscaped freeways, including exemptions for signs advertising the property's sale or lease, signs designating the premises or its owner, and signs advertising goods or services manufactured or produced on the property itself.
7. Establishes, by contractual agreement, Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control (OAC) program, which has restrictions similar to California's OAA program, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state shall lose 10% of its federal highway funding.
8. Notwithstanding any other provision of the OAA, the director may not regulate noncommercial, protected speech contained within any advertising display authorized by, or exempted from, this chapter. (California Business and Professions Section 5275)

COMMENTS

Background.

A combination of state and federal requirements govern the placement and operation of all outdoor advertising in California. The state's OAA regulates the size, illumination, orientation, and location of advertising displays adjacent to and within specified distances of interstate or primary highways. The OAA, with some exceptions, specifically prohibits the placement of any advertising display on property adjacent to a section of landscaped freeway.

State law generally does not apply to "on premise" advertising displays, including those that advertise the sale, lease, or exchange of property upon which it is placed and those that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or the goods produced or sold on the property. The regulation of "on-premise" displays is a local matter, with the exception of a few safety requirements outlined in state law. Municipal billboard regulations may also be stricter than OAA standards. Regulations may take the form of zoning laws or sign permits, for example.

Existing law, through a contractual agreement, establishes Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control program, which includes similar restrictions as the OAA, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state is subject to a sanction that would reduce its federal highway funding allocations by 10%.

Existing law provides exemptions to the OAA for certain signs located in specified jurisdictions, all of which were explicitly authorized by the Legislature. For instance, the Act exempts from regulations of the OAA for signs allowed by a City of Los Angeles ordinance in relation to the number and location of billboards in an area bounded by West 8th Street on the northeast, South Figueroa Street on the southeast, Interstate 10 on the southwest, and State Route 110 on the northwest, and a small, adjacent parcel if certain conditions are satisfied.

According to the Author

Purpose of the bill. According to the author's office, "An essential role of governmental organizations is to promote public safety and inform the public of emergent information to ensure effective county operations. With the increased affordability of digital billboards and the simplicity with which timely messaging can be displayed on them when the display can by dynamic instead of static, erecting a billboard is among the most cost-effective ways that a government entity can provide critical local information to the public including but not limited to public service advisories; campaigns to raise awareness and provide information about important issues to the community; promotion of County services available to the public; informational announcements about County government; promotion of county-sponsored events; and local and regional emergency advisories and alerts."

The author states that "this bill will enable San Joaquin residents to have access to the most current public safety and public health information available" in order to ensure the wellbeing of our community.

Arguments in Support

The San Joaquin Board of Supervisors writes, "Public messaging campaigns utilizing billboard displays are limited to the use of privately owned billboards that must be leased at high rates, with long contract lead times. This impedes local government's ability to quickly spread emergent messages and inform the community of time-sensitive information. AB 476 will amend the OAA to permit government entities from being subject to its zoning requirements. It will also provide for the issuance of a permit to display a billboard on land owned by the jurisdiction that is zoned for public facilities and adjacent to a highway or interstate to display non-commercial public messaging and announcements."

Arguments in Opposition

Scenic Los Angeles writes in opposition, "AB 476 is far too broadly worded and it will set a bad precedent for other counties. Under this bill, almost any message that could even remotely be seen as promoting some aspect of public health and safety could go onto a new digital sign on public property, be it commercial or non-commercial, private or governmental, true or bogus. It makes no mention of a specific dedication to messaging from the local health department or local traffic data, which means that the new digital displays on public property could include ads for anything in succession, as long as some "public health and safety" messaging was included."

FISCAL COMMENTS

Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.

VOTES

ASM GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION: 21-0-1

YES: Santiago, Lackey, Aguiar-Curry, Berman, Bryan, Cervantes, Megan Dahle, Davies, Garcia, Gipson, Jones-Sawyer, Mathis, McCarty, McKinnor, Jim Patterson, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Robert Rivas, Blanca Rubio, Ta, Villapudua

ABS, ABST OR NV: Low

UPDATED

VERSION: April 20, 2023

CONSULTANT: Eric Johnson / G.O. / (916) 319-2531 FN: 0000272

Date of Hearing: April 26, 2023

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION

Miguel Santiago, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 476 (

Author:Villapudua) – As Amended Ver:April 20, 2023

SUBJECT: Digital displays: public health and safety: the County of San Joaquin

SUMMARY: This bill would authorize the County of San Joaquin to construct, on public property owned by the county, digital displays that promote public health and safety. This bill makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for County of San Joaquin.

EXISTING LAW:

1) Provides, under the Outdoor Advertising Act (OAA), for the regulation by the Department of Transportation (Caltrans or department) of an advertising display, as defined, within view of public highways. The OAA regulates the placement of an off-premises advertising display along highways that generally advertises business conducted or services rendered or goods produced or sold at a location other than the property where the display is located.

2) Provides that the OAA generally does not apply to on-premise advertising displays, which include those advertising the sale of the property upon which it is placed or that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or goods produced or sold on the property. Local governments regulate on premise displays, except for certain safety requirements.

3) Provides, “on-premises advertising displays” means any structure, housing, sign, device, figure, statuary, painting, display, message placard, or other contrivance, or any part thereof, that has been designed, constructed, created, intended, or engineered to have a useful life of 15 years or more, and intended or used to advertise, or to provide data or information in the nature of advertising, for any of the following purposes:

a) To designate, identify, or indicate the name or business of the owner or occupant of the premises upon which the advertising display is located.

b) To advertise the business conducted, services available or rendered, or the goods produced, sold, or available for sale, upon the property where the advertising display has been lawfully erected.

4) Provides that on-premise message centers visible to traffic from any interstate or primary highway shall meet all of the following requirements:

a) The display may not include any message that is in motion or appears to be in motion.

b) The display may not change the intensity of illumination.

c) The display may not change the message more than once every four seconds.

5) States for purposes of the OAA, “message center” is an advertising display where the message is changed more than once every two minutes, but no more than once every four seconds. (California Code, Business and Professions § 5490.5)

6) Prohibits any advertising display from being placed or maintained on property adjacent to a section of a freeway that has been landscaped if the advertising display is designed to be viewed primarily by persons traveling on the main-traveled way of the landscaped freeway. There are 4,300 centerline miles of freeway, statewide. 1,400 of those miles are landscaped.

7) Provides for limited exemptions to the prohibition on advertising along system and landscaped freeways, including exemptions for signs advertising the property’s sale or lease, signs designating the premises or its owner, and signs advertising goods or services manufactured or produced on the property itself.

8) Establishes, by contractual agreement, Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control (OAC) program, which has restrictions similar to California’s OAA program, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state shall lose 10% of its federal highway funding.

9) Notwithstanding any other provision of the OAA, the director may not regulate noncommercial, protected speech contained within any advertising display authorized by, or exempted from, this chapter. (California Business and Professions § 5275)

FISCAL EFFECT: This bill is keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.

COMMENTS:

Purpose of the bill. According to the author’s office, “An essential role of governmental organizations is to promote public safety and inform the public of emergent information to ensure effective county operations. With the increased affordability of digital billboards and the simplicity with which timely messaging can be displayed on them when the display can by dynamic instead of static, erecting a billboard is among the most cost-effective ways that a government entity can provide critical local information to the public including but not limited to public service advisories; campaigns to raise awareness and provide information about important issues to the community; promotion of County services available to the public; informational announcements about County government; promotion of county-sponsored events; and local and regional emergency advisories and alerts.”

The author states that "this bill will enable San Joaquin residents to have access to the most current public safety and public health information available" in order to ensure the wellbeing of our community.

Background.

A combination of state and federal requirements govern the placement and operation of all outdoor advertising in California. The state’s OAA regulates the size, illumination, orientation, and location of advertising displays adjacent to and within specified distances of interstate or primary highways. The OAA, with some exceptions, specifically prohibits the placement of any advertising display on property adjacent to a section of landscaped freeway.

State law generally does not apply to “on premise” advertising displays, including those that advertise the sale, lease, or exchange of property upon which it is placed and those that advertise the business conducted, services rendered, or the goods produced or sold on the property. The regulation of "on-premise" displays is a local matter, with the exception of a few safety requirements outlined in state law. Municipal billboard regulations may also be stricter than OAA standards. Regulations may take the form of zoning laws or sign permits, for example.

Existing law, through a contractual agreement, establishes Caltrans as the administrator of the federal Outdoor Advertising Control program, which includes similar restrictions as the OAA, including maximum sign size, sign spacing, location, illumination, and content. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state is subject to a sanction that would reduce its federal highway funding allocations by 10%.

Existing law provides exemptions to the OAA for certain signs located in specified jurisdictions, all of which were explicitly authorized by the Legislature. For instance, the Act exempts from regulations of the OAA for signs allowed by a City of Los Angeles ordinance in relation to the number and location of billboards in an area bounded by West 8th Street on the northeast, South Figueroa Street on the southeast, Interstate 10 on the southwest, and State Route 110 on the northwest, and a small, adjacent parcel if certain conditions are satisfied.

Federal Highway Beautification Act of 1965. The Highway Beautification Act (HBA) was created to protect the public investment, promote the safety and recreational value of public

Travel, and to preserve the natural beauty of highways in the nation. The HBA specifies that states have the responsibility to enforce provisions regarding the placement and maintenance of outdoor advertising signs, displays and devices along the Interstate and National Highway System. In 1968 Caltrans entered into a contractual agreement with the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) to implement and enforce the federal OAC program. Many of the OAA provisions are similar to those contained in federal law, originally established in 1965 through the HBA. If the state fails to properly administer the federal program, the state is subject to a sanction that would reduce its federal highway funding allocations by 10%.

Unlike recent OAA exemptions, AB 476 does not contain a provision attempting to mitigate the risk of losing federal funds by stipulating the display may only be placed as long as they do not result in the reduction of federal aid highway funds.

FHWA periodically audits Caltrans. Caltrans is periodically audited by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to make sure it is carrying out its responsibilities as the administrator of the federal laws and regulations governing billboards. The FHWA discovered in its most recent report (Outdoor Advertising Review - June 16, 2022) that displays in arenas and redevelopment zones might not be in compliance with federal law. While the signs comply with state law, which was expressly revised to authorize many of these signs, federal law is more restrictive. The FHWA review discovered, specifically, that certain signs exceeded the size limits (1200 square feet), spacing requirements, and showed full motion video. Generally, California state law mirrors the federal-state agreements (FSAs) size and spacing requirements. However, the OAA exempt redevelopment displays from state enforcement. FHWA recommended that Caltrans pursue compliance with federal law and, in some cases, pursue removal of the signs under threat of the loss of 10% of the state’s annual federal-aid funds.

In support. The San Joaquin Board of Supervisors writes, “Public messaging campaigns utilizing billboard displays are limited to the use of privately owned billboards that must be leased at high rates, with long contract lead times. This impedes local government's ability to quickly spread emergent messages and inform the community of time-sensitive information. AB 476 will amend the OAA to permit government entities from being subject to its zoning requirements. It will also provide for the issuance of a permit to display a billboard on land owned by the jurisdiction that is zoned for public facilities and adjacent to a highway or interstate to display non-commercial public messaging and announcements.”

In opposition. Scenic Los Angeles writes in opposition, “AB 476 is far too broadly worded and it will set a bad precedent for other counties. Under this bill, almost any message that could even remotely be seen as promoting some aspect of public health and safety could go onto a new digital sign on public property, be it commercial or non-commercial, private or governmental, true or bogus. It makes no mention of a specific dedication to messaging from the local health department or local traffic data, which means that the new digital displays on public property could include ads for anything in succession, as long as some “public health and safety” messaging was included.”

Policy consideration. The amended bill (April 20, 2023) will permit multiple digital displays at unspecified locations in San Joaquin County, despite the fact that it is thought that this was not the author's intention. Also, the bill makes no mention of whether the digital displays are considered on-premise or off-premise billboards. Lastly, the bill requires more clarification regarding the specifics of the messages that may be displayed on the digital display. The bill should be amended to clarify the true intent of the measure.

Related legislation. AB 1175 (Quirk-Silva) of 2023. From January 1, 2024, to January 1, 2025, the bill would allow the applicable city, county, or city and county to request from Caltrans a 10-year extension for treating a display in a redevelopment agency project, as described above, as an on-premises display if the display meets the criteria for a finding of good cause, was in use on December 31, 2022, and complies with specified provisions of the Act, including, but not limited to, the act’s licensing and zoning requirements. The bill would require the department to provide the extension upon a finding of good cause, as specified. (Assembly Committee on Governmental Organization)

AB 1415 (Santiago) of 2023. This bill would expand designated geographic areas in the City of Los Angeles as exempt from specified provisions of the OAA. The bill would also exempt an advertising display located within those geographic areas of the city from the specified provisions of the OAA, if the display was in existence and legally permitted as of January 1, 2023, regardless of whether it meets the prescribed conditions and requirements in existing law. (Assembly Committee on Governmental Organization)

AB 1673 (Pacheco) of 2023. This bill would exempt cities and other local entities that designate where advertising displays may be placed or prohibited as part of a county land use or zoning ordinance, as defined, expand the exemption to explicitly apply to relocations of advertising displays by local entities, and authorize those entities to also use programs and resolutions to facilitate advertising display relocations. The bill would expand this exemption from the prohibition, and another exemption applicable to relocations and height increases for lawfully erected advertising displays, to provide relief from certain other provisions generally applicable to these advertising displays. The bill would explicitly state that removal or relocation of advertising displays by specified types of local governmental action constitutes “development in a planned manner without expenditure of public funds,” consistent with an existing statutory statement of state policy. (Assembly Committee on Governmental Organization)

Prior legislation. SB 1309 (Durazo) of 2022. This bill would extend the authorization date for advertising displays for designated professional sports arenas with a capacity of 15,000 or more seats to January 1, 2028. The exemption would be limited to arenas constructed or under construction before January 1, 2023, and would require that the display be in accordance with a local ordinance or other discretionary approval, as specified. (Vetoed by Governor Newsom)

AB 3168 (Rubio, Chapter 926 of 2018). Revised the OAA to facilitate the relocation and conversion of advertising displays adjacent to freeways. Specifically, the bill narrowed the definition of landscaped freeway and allow displays to be relocated, increased in height, or converted to a message center, if there is not a net increase in the number of displays statewide or a reduction of federal highway funds.

SB 405 (Mendoza of 2017). Created an exemption from specified provisions of the OAA for new advertising displays within the City of Artesia located adjacent to SR 91. (Assembly Committee on Governmental Organization)

SB 459 (Portantino), 2017- 2018 Legislative Session. Creates an exemption to the OAA for two existing billboards in the City of Upland provided the advertising displays are approved by either

Caltrans or the FHA. (Held in the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee).

SB 744 (Hueso of 2017). Exempted three existing advertising displays located near the intersection of Interstate 8 and SR 111 in the County of Imperial from specified restrictions in the OAA under specified conditions. (Assembly Committee on Governmental Organization)

AB 700 (Jones-Sawyer, Chapter 337 of 2017). Extends the deadline by an additional two years (January 1, 2019 to January 1, 2021) for a sports arena advertising display to be authorized by local ordinance in order to qualify for an OAA exemption.

SB 1199 (Hall, Chapter 869 of 2016). Authorized two existing advertising displays along Interstate 405 in the City of Inglewood to be considered “on-premise” displays, until January 1, 2023, and therefore exempt from the OAA. This authorization is valid as long as it does not cause a reduction of federal transportation funds.

AB 1373 (Santiago, Chapter 853 of 2016). Provided an exemption from regulations of the OAA for signs allowed by a City of Los Angeles ordinance in relation to the number and location of billboards in an area bounded by West 8th Street on the northeast, South Figueroa Street on the southeast, Interstate 10 on the southwest, and State Route 110 on the northwest, and a small, adjacent parcel if certain conditions are satisfied.

SB 684 (Hill), Chapter 544, Statutes of 2013. Permitted existing advertising displays that advertised businesses and activities within the boundary limits of a Redevelopment Agency project to remain and be considered “on-premise displays” until January 1, 2023. The city or county could then apply to Caltrans for an extension, showing “good cause” beginning on January 1, 2022.

SB 31 (Padilla, Chapter 542 of 2013). Established the current authorization that allows arenas to display advertising for products, goods, or services sold on premises as well as part of a sponsorship marketing plan if the arena is on public land and has a capacity of 15,000 or more seats. The bill established the 2019 deadline for these arenas to qualify for the OAA exemption by obtaining local authorization.

SB 2339 (Solorio, Chapter 493 of 2008). Exempted from the OAA displays advertising any products, goods, or services sold by persons on the premise of a publicly-owned sports arena located on public land if the arena had a capacity of 5,000 seats and had an advertising display in existence before January 1, 2009.

AB 1499 (Benoit) of 2005-2006 Legislative Session. Would have created an exemption to the OAA, to permit the City of Riverside to erect an outdoor advertising display along Highway 91 to promote economic activity for the Riverside Plaza. (Vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger)

AB 801 (Jones) of 2005-2006 Legislative Session. Would have created an exemption from the

OAA for one sign in the County of Sacramento. (Vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger)

AB 2441 (Klehs) of 2005-2006 Legislative Session. Would have authorized an advertising display in the redevelopment zone of the City of San Leandro subject to specified conditions.

(Vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger)

AB 1518 (J. Horton) of 2005-2006 Legislative Session. Would have exempted, from the prohibition against placing advertising displays adjacent to landscaped freeways, any billboard located on property owned by the Lennox School District, subject to certain conditions. (Died pending Concurrence in Assembly)

AB 2651 (McCarthy) of 2004. Creates an exemption in the OAA to permit the placement of a sign by the Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau of Kern County. (Senate Transportation Committee)

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

County of San Joaquin
San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors

Oppose

Scenic Los Angeles, a Chapter of Scenic America

Analysis Prepared by: Eric Johnson / G.O. / (916) 319-2531