SIMI VALLEY : City Amends Law on Political Signs

Just in time for the upcoming city and county elections, political campaign signs in Simi Valley will no longer be singled out for special regulation, under an amended temporary sign ordinance that the City Council has initially approved.

Before the change, signs bearing political messages could be posted for 45 days before an election and 15 days after. Other types of signs, such as real estate ads, could be posted indefinitely.

But a federal judge in Los Angeles recently ruled that the limitations on political signs were content-based and therefore unconstitutional, because they restricted free speech.

Responding to that ruling, the council Monday altered its ordinance to set uniform time limits for all temporary signs.

Under the revised ordinance, all temporary signs will be allowed to remain posted for 120 days.

After 120 days, a sign may be removed for one day and then replaced near its original posting site, City Atty. John Torrance told the council.

Torrance explained that the loophole was designed to allow real estate agents to advertise unsold properties for longer periods of time.

But Mayor Greg Stratton said the provision would invite abuse of the law.

“The ground is going to be like Swiss cheese,” Stratton said. “Some guy is just going to move his sign from hole to hole.”

Stratton asked that the ordinance be reviewed within the next year to make sure that it is not being abused.