U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Says Los Angeles Outdoor Ad Ban OK

The city of Los Angeles wants to ban billboard advertising, and the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals says that's OK.

The city (and many others across the country) have been trying to ban outdoor advertising as an eyesore and public nuisance--as they distract drivers. The city's elected officials want to limit the size, location, brightness and sheer number of new signs.

In a win for the city, the court reversed a lower-court ruling, saying the city's 2002 prohibition of outdoor advertising does not violate a sign company's 1st Amendment right to free speech.

Outdoor advertising company Metro Lights LLC had argued that the city could not prohibit new "off-site" signs -- images that advertise products not sold on the immediate property -- while at the same time selling advertising space on city-owned bus benches and kiosks. Metro Lights had accused the city of auctioning off "1st Amendment rights to the highest bidder."

The ruling opens up the possibility that other municipalities could ban outdoor advertising as well. The Curcuit Court has jurisdiction in nine Western states -- California, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Alaska and Hawaii.

Source: The Los Angeles Times