Senate Bill No. 684

CHAPTER 544

An act to amend Section 5273 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to advertising displays, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

[Approved by Governor October 4, 2013. Filed with Secretary of State October 4, 2013.]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 684, Hill. Advertising displays: redevelopment agency project areas.

Existing law, the Outdoor Advertising Act, provides for the regulation by the Department of Transportation of advertising displays, as defined, within view of public highways. The act regulates the placement of off-premises advertising displays along highways that generally advertise business conducted or services rendered or goods produced or sold at a location other than the property upon which the display is located. Under the act, advertising displays advertising businesses and activities within the boundary limits of, and as a part of, an individual redevelopment agency project may, with the consent of the redevelopment agency governing the project, be considered to be on premises, as specified. A violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor.

The Community Redevelopment Law authorizes the establishment of redevelopment agencies in communities to address the effects of blight, as defined. Existing law dissolved redevelopment agencies and community development agencies, as of February 1, 2012, and provides for the designation of successor agencies.

This bill would provide that an advertising display advertising businesses and activities within the boundary limits of, and as a part of, an individual redevelopment agency project, as the project boundaries existed on December 29, 2011, may remain and be considered an on-premises display, until January 1, 2023, if the advertising display meets specified criteria. This bill would authorize, on and after January 1, 2022, the applicable city, county, or city and county to request from the department an extension for good cause, as specified, beyond January 1, 2023, not to exceed the expiration of the redevelopment project area. The bill would require a specified certification of a local agency authorizing one of these advertising displays, and would require the local agency to ensure that the display conforms to the bill’s requirements. By imposing a new requirement in that regard on local agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. By imposing new conditions on a redevelopment project advertising display to remain lawfully erected, a violation of which would constitute a misdemeanor, this bill would also impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 5273 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:

5273.  

(a) Notwithstanding the dissolution of a state redevelopment agency, and subject to subdivision (b), for purposes of this chapter, an advertising display advertising the businesses and activities developed within the boundary limits of, and as a part of, an individual redevelopment agency project, as those boundaries existed on December 29, 2011, may continue to exist and be considered an on-premises display, as defined in Section 5490, if the advertising display meets all of the following conditions:

(1) The advertising display is located within the boundary limits of the project.

(2) The advertising display was constructed on or before January 1, 2012.

(3) The advertising display does not cause the reduction of federal aid highway funds provided pursuant to Section 131 of Title 23 of the United States Code. If an advertising display authorized under this section is subject to a notice from the United States Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, or any other applicable federal agency to the state that the operation of that display will result in the reduction of federal aid highway funds as provided in Section 131 of Title 23 of the United States Code, the display owner or operator shall remove all advertising copy from the display within 60 days after the date the state notifies the owner or operator, and the applicable city, county, or city and county, by certified mail, of the receipt of the federal notice. Failure to remove the advertising copy pursuant to this paragraph shall result in a civil fine, imposed by the California Department of Transportation, of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per day until the advertising copy is removed. The department shall not assume any liability in connection with the cessation of operation or removal of an advertising display or advertising copy pursuant to this paragraph. If the name of the owner or operator of the display is not indicated on the display, the state is only required to send the notice to the applicable city, county, or city and county.

(b) An advertising display described in subdivision (a) may remain until January 1, 2023, after which date the display shall be removed, unless it otherwise qualifies as a lawful advertising display pursuant to this chapter, without the payment of any compensation to the owner or operator. On and after January 1, 2022, the applicable city, county, or city and county may for good cause request from the department an extension beyond January 1, 2023, not to exceed the expiration of the redevelopment project area. “Good cause” for these purposes means all of the following are satisfied: (1) there has been a finding by the applicable city, county, or city and county that the advertising display has had a positive economic impact on the redevelopment project area and provides a public benefit, (2) there have been no violations by the display owner or operator of this section or of any applicable illumination standards in the previous 10 years that have not been corrected within 30 days of the date of mailing of a violation notice to the owner or operator by the department, and (3) there has been compliance by the owner and operator with all other standards adopted by the applicable city, county, or city and county, or by the department.

(c) The applicable city, county, or city and county shall be responsible for ensuring that an advertising display is consistent with this section and provides a public benefit. This provision shall not be construed to preclude any enforcement authority of the department under this chapter.

(d) The applicable city, county, or city and county shall annually, by December 31, certify to the department that the advertising copy of the advertising display is advertising businesses or activities operating within the boundaries of the redevelopment project area and that at least 10 percent of the advertising copy, up to a maximum of 100 square feet, is used to display the address or location or locations of the business or activity, or to identify the route to the business or activity from the nearest freeway offramp. The department may independently review compliance with this certification. An advertising display subject to this section shall be removed if it is in violation of this subdivision more than three times within a 10-year period and the violation has not been corrected within 30 days of the date of mailing of a violation notice to the owner or operator by the department.

(e) The applicable city, county, or city and county authorizing an advertising display placed pursuant to this section shall have primary responsibility for ensuring that the display remains in conformance with all provisions of this section. If the city, county, or city and county fails to do so within 30 days of the date of mailing of a notice to the city, county, or city and county by the department, the city, county, or city and county shall hold the department harmless and indemnify the department for all costs incurred by the department to ensure compliance with this section or to defend actions challenging the authorization of displays pursuant to this section.

SEC. 2.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for certain costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.

However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

SEC. 3.  

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

As of February 1, 2012, redevelopment agencies have been dissolved and designated successor agencies have been vested with all authority, rights, powers, duties, and obligations previously vested in the former redevelopment agencies, including projects addressing blight in communities. In order that advertising displays can continue to exist within the redevelopment agency projects, and help to fight blight in an affected community, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.



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