Assigned to ELEC                                                                                                                             AS VETOED

 

 

 

 


ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Fifty-Sixth Legislature, First Regular Session

 

VETOED

 

AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1025

 

political signs; tourism zones

Purpose

Prohibits the area of a municipality-designated commercial tourism, commercial resort and hotel sign free zone (sign free tourism zone) from exceeding 10 percent of the total area of the municipality and requires the sign free tourism zone to have a Reock score of .10 or more.

Background

Within 71 days before a primary election and 15 days after a general election, a city, town or county may not remove, alter, deface or cover a political sign that: 1) is placed in a public
right-of-way owned by the jurisdiction; 2) supports or opposes a ballot measure or candidate for office; 3) does not obstruct clear vision in the area; 4) is not hazardous to public safety; and
5) does not interfere with the requirements of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The prohibition does not apply to a municipality-designated sign free tourism zone for which the municipal governing body determines by resolution that, based on a predominance of commercial tourism, resort and hotel uses, the placement of political signs will detract from the scenic and aesthetic appeal of the area and deter the area's appeal to tourists. Municipalities may designate up to two sign free tourism zones the total area of which may not be more than three square miles (A.R.S. § 16-1019). 

There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.

Provisions

1.   Prohibits the area of a sign free tourism zone from exceeding 10 percent of the total area of the municipality.

2.   Requires a sign free tourism zone to have a Reock score of at least .10.

3.   Authorizes a municipality to establish areas within a sign free tourism zone in which political signs are allowed and requires the municipality include the areas in the calculation of the area of the sign free tourism zone.

4.   Specifies that a Reock score is calculated by dividing the area of the sign free tourism zone by the area of the smallest circle that may be drawn to enclose the entire zone.

5.   Makes technical changes.

6.   Becomes effective on the general effective date.

Amendments Adopted by Committee of the Whole

· Decreases, from .20 to .10, the required Reock score for a sign free tourism zone.

Governor's Veto Message

The Governor indicates in her veto message that it is unclear what problem S.B. 1025 aims to solve and that Arizonans are not asking for more campaign signs in their communities.

Senate Action                                                          House Action

ELEC              1/23/23      DP          5-3-0                MOE               3/8/23        DP       5-4-0-1

3rd Read          2/28/23                     18-10-2            3rd Read          5/15/23                  31-27-1-0-1

Vetoed by the Governor on 5/19/23

Prepared by Senate Research

May 22, 2023

AN/slp