View Draft Ordinance (June 5, 2019)

Since 2002, the City of Los Angeles has maintained a citywide ban on off-site signs (also
known as billboards) to control visual blight. Sign Districts, established by a process
requiring City Planning Commission (CPC) review and City Council approval, have
provided an exception to the ban by allowing off-site signs in geographic areas with
unique characteristics that benefit from special off-site sign provisions. Generally,
properties eligible for a sign district must consist of at least one block or three acres,
whichever is less, and zoned C or M. These regulations are currently in effect.
In 2008, the City Planning Department began drafting a citywide sign ordinance to update
sign regulations. Over the years, the CPC and the Planning and Land Use Management
(PLUM) Committee of the City Council have considered several versions of a citywide
sign ordinance, all of which address the following policies:

• Maintain the City’s current ban on off-site signs, with exceptions
• Achieve a net reduction of off-site signs
• Limit the location of on-site digital signs
• Tighten requirements for establishing sign districts
• Establish digital sign standards
• Create sign-specific relief mechanisms
• Establish higher fines for violations
• Remove content-related provisions

As of the date of this summary, PLUM has not recommended an ordinance to the City
Council.