Bill Text: MI HB4682 | 2011-2012 | 96th Legislature | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Highways; signs; waiver to prohibition of cutting trees obstructing view of billboards located in commercial and industrial zones; provide for. Amends sec. 11a of 1972 PA 106 (MCL 252.311a).

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 12-7)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-05-26 - Printed Bill Filed 05/26/2011 [HB4682 Detail]

Download: Michigan-2011-HB4682-Introduced.html

---

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE BILL No. 4682

 

May 25, 2011, Introduced by Reps. Yonker, Heise, Santana, Pscholka, Dillon, Hobbs, Hughes, Jenkins, Lori, Hooker, Johnson, Zorn, Rendon, Lindberg, Roy Schmidt, Olumba, Potvin, Daley and Liss and referred to the Committee on Transportation.

 

     A bill to amend 1972 PA 106, entitled

 

"Highway advertising act of 1972,"

 

by amending section 11a (MCL 252.311a), as amended by 2009 PA 86.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 11a. (1) Subject to the requirements of this section, the

 

department is authorized to and shall issue permits for the

 

management of vegetation to the owner of a sign subject to this

 

act.

 

     (2) A sign owner may apply to the department for a permit to

 

manage vegetation using the department's approved form. The

 

application shall be accompanied by an application fee of $150.00

 

to cover the costs of evaluating and processing the application.

 

The application shall be submitted during the 2 or more annual

 

application periods not less than 60 days each, as specified by the

 

department. The application shall clearly identify the vegetation

 

to be managed in order to create visibility of the sign within the

 

billboard viewing zone and all proposed mitigation for the impacts

 

of the vegetation management undertaken. The application shall also

 

include anticipated management that will be needed in the future to

 

maintain the visibility of the sign within the billboard viewing

 

zone for the time specified in subsection (4) and procedures for

 

clearing vegetation as determined by the department.

 

     (3) Unless otherwise agreed to by the department and an

 

applicant, the department shall issue its decision on an

 

application no later than 30 days after the last day of the

 

application period. The department shall approve the application,

 

approve the application with modification, or deny the application.

 

If the department approves the application or approves the

 

application with modification, it shall notify the applicant and

 

the notification shall include the value of the vegetation to be

 

managed as determined by the department using the most recent

 

version of the international society of arboriculture's guide for

 

plant appraisal and the corresponding Michigan tree evaluation

 

supplement to the guide for plant appraisal published by the

 

Michigan forestry and park association. The department may use

 

another objective authoritative guide in consultation with

 

representatives of the outdoor advertising industry and other

 

interested parties, if either the guide or the supplement has not

 

been updated for more than 5 years. The department, in consultation

 

with representatives of the outdoor advertising industry and other

 

interested parties, may develop a value schedule for vegetation. If

 

agreed to by both the department and the applicant, this value

 

schedule shall be used to determine the value of the vegetation to

 

be managed. The notification to the applicant shall also include

 

any required mitigation for the vegetation to be managed and all

 

conditions and requirements associated with the issuance of the

 

permit. The permit fee shall be $300.00, except that in special and

 

unique situations and circumstances where the department incurs

 

additional costs directly attributable to the approval of the

 

permit, a fee greater than $300.00 adequate for the recovery of

 

additional costs may be assessed. Upon receipt of the permit fee,

 

payment for the value of the vegetation, and compliance with MDOT

 

conditions and requirements, the department shall issue the permit.

 

     (4) Subject to the provisions of this subsection, a permit to

 

manage vegetation shall provide for a minimum of 5 seconds of

 

continuous, clear, and unobstructed view of the billboard face

 

based on travel at the posted speed as measured from the point

 

directly adjacent to the point of the billboard closest to the

 

highway. The department and the applicant may enter into an

 

agreement, at the request of the applicant, identifying the

 

specific location of the continuous, clear, and unobstructed view

 

within the billboard viewing zone. The specific location may begin

 

at a point anywhere within the billboard viewing zone but shall

 

result in a continuous, clear, and unobstructed view of not less

 

than 5 seconds. An applicant shall apply for a permit that

 

minimizes the amount of vegetation to be managed for the amount of

 

viewing time requested. Applications for vegetation management that

 

provide for greater than 5 seconds of continuous, clear, and

 

unobstructed viewing at the posted speed as measured from a point

 

directly adjacent to the point of the billboard closest to the

 

highway shall not be rejected based solely upon the application

 

exceeding the 5-second minimum. For billboards spaced less than 500

 

feet apart, vegetation management, when permitted, shall provide

 

for a minimum of 5 seconds of continuous, clear, and unobstructed

 

view of the billboard face based on travel at the posted speed or

 

the distance between the billboard and the adjacent billboard,

 

whichever is less.

 

     (5) The department shall issue permits for vegetation

 

management in a viewing cone or, at the department's discretion,

 

another shape that provides for the continuous, clear, and

 

unobstructed view of the billboard face. The department may, in its

 

discretion, issue a permit for vegetation management outside of the

 

billboard viewing zone.

 

     (6) If no suitable alternative exists or the applicant is

 

unable to provide acceptable mitigation, the department may deny an

 

application or provide a limited permit to manage vegetation when

 

it can be demonstrated that 1 or more of the following situations

 

exist:

 

     (a) The vegetation management would have an adverse impact on

 

safety.

 

     (b) The vegetation management would have an adverse impact on

 

operations of the state trunk line highway.

 

     (c) The vegetation management conflicts with federal or state

 

law, rules, or statutory requirements.

 

     (d) The applicant does not have the approval of the owner of

 

the property.

 

     (e) The vegetation to be managed was planted or permitted to

 

be planted by the department for a specific purpose.

 

     (f) Vegetation would be managed for a newly constructed

 

billboard or vegetation existed that obscured the billboard or

 

would have obscured the billboard before it was constructed, unless

 

the billboard is in a zone that is designated as commercial or

 

industrial. In denying an application or providing a limited

 

permit, the department shall consider previous vegetation

 

management that was allowed at the billboard site.

 

     (g) The management would occur on a scenic or heritage route

 

that was designated on or before the effective date of the

 

amendatory act that added this section.

 

     (h) The application is for a sign that has been found, after a

 

hearing in accordance with section 19, not to be in compliance with

 

this act.

 

     (i) Other special or unique circumstances or conditions exist,

 

including, but not limited to, adverse impact on the environment,

 

natural features, or adjacent property owners.

 

     (7) If the department denies an application or issues a

 

limited permit under this subsection, the department shall provide

 

a specific rationale for denying an application or approving a

 

limited permit.

 

     (8) No later than 30 days after receiving a denial or a

 

limited permit under subsection (6), an applicant may request the

 

review and reconsideration of the denial or limited permit. The

 

applicant shall submit its request in writing on a form as

 

determined by the department. The applicant shall state the

 

specific item or items for which review and reconsideration are

 

being requested. An applicant who received a limited permit may

 

manage vegetation in accordance with that permit during the review

 

and reconsideration period.

 

     (9) No later than 90 days after January 1, 2007, the

 

department shall develop a procedure for review and reconsideration

 

of applications that are denied or that result in the issuance of a

 

limited permit. This procedure shall include at least 2 levels of

 

review and provide for input from the applicant. The review period

 

shall not exceed 120 days. The department shall consult with all

 

affected and interested parties, including, but not limited to,

 

representatives of the outdoor advertising industry, in the

 

development of this procedure.

 

     (10) If, after review and reconsideration as provided for in

 

subsection (8), the applicant is denied a permit or issued a

 

limited permit, the applicant may appeal the decision of the

 

department to a court of competent jurisdiction.

 

     (11) All work performed in connection with trimming, removing,

 

or relocating vegetation shall be performed at the sign owner's

 

expense.

 

     (12) The department shall not plant or authorize to be planted

 

any vegetation that obstructs, or through expected normal growth

 

will obstruct in the future, the visibility within the billboard

 

viewing zone of any portion of a sign face subject to this act.

 

     (13) The department shall prepare an annual report for

 

submission to the legislature regarding the vegetation management

 

undertaken pursuant to this section. At a minimum, this report

 

shall include all of the following items:

 

     (a) The number of application periods.

 

     (b) The number of applications submitted under this section.

 

     (c) The number of permits approved without modifications.

 

     (d) The number of permits approved with modifications.

 

     (e) The number of permits denied.

 

     (f) The number of modified or denied permits which were

 

appealed.

 

     (g) The number of appeals that reversed the department's

 

decision.

 

     (h) The number of appeals that upheld the department's

 

decision.

 

     (i) The number of permits approved which requested a

 

visibility time period exceeding 5 seconds.

 

     (j) The amount of compensation paid to the state for removed

 

vegetation.

 

     (k) The average number of days after the end of the

 

application period before an applicant was sent notice that a

 

permit was approved.

 

     (l) A summary of the reasons for which the department denied or

 

modified permits.

 

     (m) A summary of the amount of all revenues and expenses

 

associated with the management of the vegetation program.

 

     (14) The report in subsection (13) shall contain a summary for

 

the entire state and report in detail for each department region.

 

The department shall provide the report to the legislature for

 

review no later than 90 days following the completion of each

 

fiscal year. The reporting deadline for the initial report is 18

 

months after January 1, 2007.

 

     (15) A person who under the authority of a permit obtained

 

under this section trims or removes more trees and shrubs than the

 

permit authorizes is subject to 1 or more of the following

 

penalties:

 

     (a) For the first 3 violations during a 3-year period, a

 

penalty of an amount up to $5,000.00 or the amount authorized as a

 

penalty in section 11(1), whichever is greater.

 

     (b) For the fourth violation during a 3-year period and any

 

additional violation during that period, a penalty of an amount up

 

to $25,000.00 or double the amount authorized as a penalty in

 

section 11(1), whichever is greater, for each violation.

 

     (c) For the fourth violation during a 3-year period, and any

 

additional violation, a person is not eligible to obtain or renew a

 

permit under this section for a period of 3 years from the date of

 

the fourth violation.

 

     (16) If the department alleges that a person has trimmed or

 

removed more trees or shrubs than the permit authorizes, then the

 

department shall notify the person of its intent to seek any 1 or

 

more of the penalties provided in subsection (15). The notification

 

shall be in writing and delivered via United States certified mail,

 

and shall detail the conduct the department alleges constitutes a

 

violation of subsection (15), shall indicate what penalties the

 

department will be seeking under subsection (15), and shall occur

 

within 30 days of the filing of the completion order for the

 

trimming or removal of trees or shrubs the department alleges

 

violated the permit. Any allegation by the department that a person

 

has trimmed or removed more trees or shrubs than the permit

 

authorizes shall be is subject to the appeals process contained in

 

subsections (8), (9), and (10).

 

     (17) As used in this act:

 

     (a) "Billboard viewing zone" means the 1,000-foot area

 

measured at the pavement edge of the main-traveled way closest to

 

the billboard having as its terminus the point of the right-of-way

 

line immediately adjacent to the billboard.

 

     (b) "Vegetation management" means the trimming, removal, or

 

relocation of trees, shrubs, or other plant material.

 

     (c) "Viewing cone" means the triangular area described as the

 

point directly below the face of the billboard closest to the

 

roadway, the point directly below the billboard face farthest away

 

from the roadway, a point as measured from a point directly

 

adjacent to the part of the billboard closest to the roadway and

 

extending back parallel to the roadway the distance that provides

 

the view of the billboard prescribed in this section, and the

 

triangle described by the points extending upward to the top of the

 

billboard.