Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Under current law, no person may erect or maintain an outdoor advertising sign
visible from the main-traveled way of an interstate or federal-aid highway unless
he or she possesses a license issued by the department of transportation (DOT), the
sign complies with applicable regulations, and, if DOT has promulgated a rule
requiring payment of an annual permit fee for the sign, the person has paid the
annual permit fee. DOT may remove signs that are improperly placed or that do not
conform to applicable requirements but, for each sign removed, must pay just
compensation to the owner of the sign and to the owner of the land on which the sign
is located.
This bill prohibits the erection of new billboards but allows existing billboards
to be maintained and to vary their advertising and informative displays, except that
the height of any existing billboard may not be increased.
The bill also creates a billboard elimination grant program, administered by
DOT, to provide grants of financial assistance to cities, villages, towns, and counties
to acquire and eliminate billboards. The bill requires DOT to promulgate a rule

requiring payment of an annual permit fee for the sign and provides that the fee must
be at least $200, of which $200 from each fee is used to fund the grants. If a billboard
is eliminated, and it meets the eligibility criteria for a specific information sign or a
tourist-oriented directional sign, review of its application is expedited and, with
respect to a specific information sign, the application is given priority over other
applicants if all spaces for business signs on the specific information sign are
currently being used.
For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
printed as an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
SB219, s. 1 1Section 1. 20.395 (1) (ij) of the statutes is created to read:
SB219,2,52 20.395 (1) (ij) Billboard elimination grant program, state funds. From the
3general fund, all moneys received from annual permit fees that are credited to this
4appropriation under s. 84.30 (10m), for the purpose of the billboard elimination grant
5program under s. 84.305.
SB219, s. 2 6Section 2. 25.40 (1) (a) 21. of the statutes is created to read:
SB219,2,87 25.40 (1) (a) 21. Moneys received under s. 84.30 (10m) that are deposited in the
8general fund and credited to the appropriation under s. 20.395 (1) (ij).
SB219, s. 3 9Section 3. 59.70 (22) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB219,2,1410 59.70 (22) Billboard regulation. The board may regulate, by ordinance, the
11maintenance and construction of billboards and other similar structures on premises
12abutting on highways maintained by the county so as to promote the safety of public
13travel thereon. Such ordinances shall not apply within cities, villages , and towns
14which have enacted ordinances regulating the same subject matter.
SB219, s. 4 15Section 4. 60.23 (29) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB219,3,316 60.23 (29) Billboard regulation. Enact and enforce an ordinance, and provide
17a forfeiture for a violation of the ordinance, that regulates the maintenance and

1construction
of billboards and other similar structures on premises abutting on
2highways in the town that are maintained by the town or by the county in which the
3town is located so as to promote the safety of public travel on the highways.
SB219, s. 5 4Section 5. 84.30 (2) (am) of the statutes is created to read:
SB219,3,75 84.30 (2) (am) "Billboard" means any structure, whether freestanding or
6supported, that is designed or used for the principal purpose of having advertising
7or informative content displayed upon it.
SB219, s. 6 8Section 6. 84.30 (2) (j) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB219,3,139 84.30 (2) (j) "Sign" means any outdoor advertising sign, display, device, notice,
10figure, painting, drawing, message, placard, poster, billboard, or other thing, which
11is designed, intended, or used to advertise or inform, any part of the advertising or
12informative contents of which is visible from any place on the main-traveled way of
13any portion of an interstate highway or primary highway.
SB219, s. 7 14Section 7. 84.30 (3) (e) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB219,3,1615 84.30 (3) (e) Signs, other than billboards, to be erected in business areas
16subsequent to March 18, 1972, which when erected will comply with sub. (4).
SB219, s. 8 17Section 8. 84.30 (3m) of the statutes is created to read:
SB219,3,2518 84.30 (3m) Erection of billboards prohibited. No billboard that is visible
19from the main-traveled way of any interstate highway or primary highway may be
20erected on or after the effective date of this subsection .... [revisor inserts date]. This
21subsection does not prohibit the maintenance of a billboard, or the varying of the
22advertising or informative contents of a billboard, that was lawfully erected before
23the effective date of this subsection .... [revisor inserts date], except that the height
24of any such billboard may not be increased after the effective date of this subsection
25.... [revisor inserts date].
SB219, s. 9
1Section 9. 84.30 (10m) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB219,4,102 84.30 (10m) Annual permit fee requirement. The department may shall
3promulgate a rule requiring persons specified in the rule to pay annual permit fees
4for signs. If the department establishes an annual permit fee under this subsection,
5failure to pay the fee
The fee for the annual permit shall be not less than $200. From
6each annual permit fee collected under this subsection, $200 shall be deposited in the
7general fund and credited to the appropriation under s. 20.395 (1) (ij). Failure to pay
8an annual permit fee under this subsection
within 2 months after the date on which
9payment is due is evidence that the sign has been abandoned for the purposes of s.
10TRANS 201.10 (2) (f), Wis. Adm. Code.
SB219, s. 10 11Section 10. 84.30 (17) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB219,4,1412 84.30 (17) Transportation fund. All Except as provided in sub. (10m), all fees
13collected for the issuance of permits provided for under this section shall be paid into
14the transportation fund.
SB219, s. 11 15Section 11. 84.305 of the statutes is created to read:
SB219,4,17 1684.305 Billboard elimination grant program. (1) In this section, "political
17subdivision" means a city, village, town, or county.
SB219,5,5 18(2) The department shall administer the billboard elimination grant program
19to award grants of assistance to political subdivisions to acquire and eliminate
20billboards. Grants under this section shall be paid from the appropriation under s.
2120.395 (1) (ij). The department shall prescribe by rule the procedure and criteria for
22selecting grant recipients under this section. The criteria shall consider the physical
23condition, age, and proximity to a highway of the billboard that the political
24subdivision proposes to acquire and eliminate. Grants under this section shall be
25awarded annually, beginning in 2003, from applications submitted on or before

1February 1 of each year. If the amounts available for awards under this section are
2insufficient to award grants to all qualified applicants, the department shall give
3priority in awarding grants under this section in the following year to political
4subdivisions that applied for but, because of insufficient funds, did not receive a
5grant under this section during the previous year.
SB219,5,17 6(3) If the advertising or informative content of any billboard eliminated under
7sub. (2) is a motorist service, as defined in s. 86.195 (1) (c), for purposes of a specific
8information sign under s. 86.195 or is a tourist-related business, service, or activity,
9as defined in s. 86.196 (1) (b), for purposes of a tourist-oriented directional sign under
10s. 86.196, the department shall expedite review of any application of a person with
11respect to such advertising or informative content for a specific information sign or
12a tourist-oriented directional sign at a location reasonably close to the location of the
13billboard elimination under sub. (2). If space for a business sign is not available for
14an applicant under this subsection on a specific information sign under s. 86.195 (5)
15(b), the department shall give priority to an applicant under this subsection over
16other applicants whenever space for the business sign is available on the specific
17information sign.
SB219, s. 12 18Section 12 . Initial applicability.
SB219,5,2119 (1) The treatment of section 84.30 (3m) of the statutes first applies to billboards
20for which a license is not issued under section 84.30 (10) of the statutes before the
21effective date of this subsection.
SB219,5,2322 (2) The treatment of section 84.30 (10m) of the statutes first applies to
23applications for licenses submitted on the effective date of this subsection.
SB219, s. 13 24Section 13. Effective date.
SB219,6,2
1(1) This act takes effect on January 1, 2002, or the first day of the first month
2beginning after publication.
SB219,6,33 (End)
Loading...
Loading...