California puts electronic billboard bill on hold

Sacramento, California


Wednesday, July 11, 2007


Legislation that would make it easier for billboard companies to erect large digital advertising displays along highways -- such as one near the Bay Bridge toll plaza that sparked complaints -- will be held until next year, its sponsor said Tuesday.
Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, D-San Francisco, author of the bill, AB830, decided to pull it Tuesday from the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee to hear the concerns of some critics, her chief of staff, Bill Barnes, said.
"We plan to have a stakeholder meeting to discuss (possible changes)," he said.
The bill has been a thorny one for Ma because the billboard near the Bay Bridge in Oakland has resulted in a flood of driver complaints to Caltrans. The sign, owned by CBS Outdoor, reportedly could be seen at night as far as the Oakland hills and across the bay in San Francisco.
Ma's bill would make it easier for companies to install such signs by removing existing restrictions that prohibit turning billboards into digital displays on landscaped highways. She has argued that it's time to take advantage of new technology that includes making the new signs available for emergency announcements such as Amber Alerts.
The bill had passed the state Assembly in a 60-6 vote. Four of the "no" votes came from Bay Area Assembly members -- Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley; Mark Leno, D-San Francisco; Gene Mullin, D-South San Francisco; and Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael.
Friday is the deadline for policy committees in both houses of the Legislature to pass all bills, and Ma wanted to take more time to consider potential amendments, Barnes said.
One potential change in the bill would require billboard companies to connect their new digital signs to the state's emergency announcement systems, Barnes said.
Other possible amendments include giving the California Highway Patrol greater authority to determine whether the signs bother motorists, and the Sierra Club's suggestion that billboard companies be required to use solar power to light the signs, he said.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle by Matthew Yi