[atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to the Scenic Vistas Act; amending RCW 47.42.080, 47.42.090, 47.42.120, 47.42.130, and 47.42.911; adding new sections to chapter 47.42 RCW; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 47.42.080 and 1985 c 376 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Any sign erected or maintained contrary to the provisions of this chapter or rules adopted ((~~hereunder~~)) under it that is designed to be viewed from the interstate system, the primary system, or the scenic system is a public nuisance and is in violation of the Scenic Vistas Act, and the department((~~, the chief of the Washington state patrol, the county sheriff, or the chief of police of any city or town~~)) shall notify the ((~~permittee or, if there is no permittee,~~)) sign owner or the owner of the property on which the sign is located, or both, by certified mail at his or her last known address, that it constitutes a public nuisance by violating the Scenic Vistas Act and must comply with ((~~the~~)) this chapter or be removed, or the person notified is subject to a civil penalty under subsection (2) of this section.

(2) If the ((~~permittee or owner, as the case may be,~~)) sign owner or the owner of the property on which the sign is located fails to either comply with ((~~the~~)) this chapter or remove any such sign within fifteen days after being notified ((~~to remove the sign he is guilty of a misdemeanor. In addition to the penalties imposed by law upon conviction, an order may be entered compelling removal of the sign.~~)) in accordance with subsection (1) of this section, the sign owner or the property owner has maintained a public nuisance and committed a violation of the Scenic Vistas Act. Beginning the sixteenth day after being notified to either comply with this chapter or remove the sign, the sign owner or the property owner is subject to a civil penalty of one hundred dollars for that day and for each day thereafter, up to a maximum of thirty days, that the sign is maintained ((~~constitutes a separate offense~~)). The department shall impose the civil penalty by a written notice, either by certified mail with return receipt requested or by personal service, to the sign owner or the property owner. The notice must describe the violation, the dates of violation, the dollar amount of penalty due, the date due, and shall order that the sign either be made to comply with this chapter or be immediately removed.

(3) Penalties imposed under this section become due and payable thirty days after receipt of the notice imposing them unless an appeal is filed. Whenever an appeal of a penalty is filed, as provided for in section 3 of this act, the penalty becomes due and payable upon completion of all review proceedings and upon issuance of a final decision confirming the penalty in whole or in part. If the amount of penalty owed the department is not paid within thirty days after it becomes due and payable, the attorney general, upon request of the department, shall bring an action in Thurston county in the name of the state to recover the penalty. Civil penalties collected under this section must be deposited into the motor vehicle fund.

(4) If the ((~~permittee~~)) sign owner or the owner of the property upon which ((it)) the sign is located((~~, as the case may be,~~)) is not found or refuses receipt of the notice, the department((~~, the chief of the Washington state patrol, the county sheriff, or the chief of police of any city or town~~)) shall post the sign and property upon which it is located with a notice that the sign constitutes a public nuisance and must either be made to comply with this chapter or be removed. If the sign is not brought into compliance or removed within fifteen days after such posting, the department((~~, the chief of the Washington state patrol, the county sheriff, or the chief of police of any city or town~~)) shall abate the nuisance and destroy the sign, and for that purpose may enter upon private property without incurring liability for doing so.

((~~(4)~~)) (5) Nothing in this section may be construed to affect the provisions contained in RCW 47.42.102 requiring the payment of compensation upon the removal of any signs compensable under state law.

(((5) Any sign erected or maintained on state highway right of way contrary to this chapter or rules adopted under it is a public nuisance, and the department is authorized to remove any such sign without notice.))

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 47.42 RCW to read as follows:

(1) A sign, except an official traffic control sign installed by a public agency, erected or maintained on a public right of way adjacent to a state highway, a county road, or a city or town street, and funded wholly or in part with state funds, is considered to be litter and a public nuisance.

(2) The department, for highways under its jurisdiction, a county, for roads under its jurisdiction, and a city or town, for streets under its jurisdiction, may remove any such sign without notice.

(3) A monetary penalty may be assessed in lieu of sign removal by public agencies. A person who installs a sign on a public right of way, as specified in subsection (1) of this section, has committed a violation of the Scenic Vistas Act and is subject to a civil penalty of one hundred dollars per day, up to a maximum of thirty days, for each day that the sign is maintained. The agency having jurisdiction over the public right of way where the sign is installed may impose a civil penalty by written notice, either by certified mail with return receipt requested, or by personal service. The notice must describe the violation, the dollar amount of the penalty due, the date due, and order that the sign be immediately removed.

(4) Penalties imposed under subsection (3) of this section are due and payable thirty days after receipt of the notice imposing them. Funds collected by a public agency from these civil penalties must be spent in the agency's maintenance or landscaping budget for roadway beautification purposes.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 47.42 RCW to read as follows:

Persons incurring a civil penalty imposed by the department may appeal the penalty to the secretary of transportation or a designee within thirty days of receipt of the notice of penalty. Appeals to decisions by the secretary of transportation or a designee are contested cases under chapter 34.05 RCW.

Sec. 4. RCW 47.42.090 and 1984 c 7 s 228 are each amended to read as follows:

((~~If any person is convicted of a violation of this chapter, or any rule adopted hereunder,~~)) The department may revoke ((~~any~~)), without further process or liability, a permit issued ((~~to that person~~)) under this chapter to a person who has incurred a civil penalty for a violation of this chapter or a rule adopted under it, and who fails to comply with this chapter or remove a sign in accordance with RCW 47.42.080(2).

Sec. 5. RCW 47.42.120 and 1984 c 7 s 232 are each amended to read as follows:

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, no sign except a sign of type 1 or 2 or those type 3 signs that advertise activities conducted upon the properties where the signs are located, may be erected or maintained without a permit issued by the department. Application for a permit shall be made to the department on forms furnished by it. The forms shall contain a statement that the owner or lessee of the land in question has consented thereto. The application shall be accompanied by a fee ((~~of ten dollars~~)) established by department rule to be deposited with the state treasurer to the credit of the motor vehicle fund. Permits shall be for the remainder of the calendar year in which they are issued, and ((~~shall be renewed annually upon payment of this fee for the new year without the filing of a new application.~~)) accompanying fees shall not be prorated for fractions of the year. Permits must be renewed annually through a certification process established by department rule. Advertising copy may be changed at any time without the payment of an additional fee. Assignment of permits in good standing is effective only upon receipt of written notice of assignment by the department. A permit may be revoked after hearing if the department finds that any statement made in the application or annual certification process was false or misleading, or that the sign covered is not in good general condition and in a reasonable state of repair, or is otherwise in violation of this chapter, if the false or misleading information has not been corrected and the sign has not been brought into compliance with this chapter or rules adopted under it within thirty days after written notification.

Sec. 6. RCW 47.42.130 and 1984 c 7 s 233 are each amended to read as follows:

Every permit issued by the department shall be assigned a separate identification number, and each permittee shall fasten to each sign a weatherproof label, not larger than ((~~six~~)) sixteen square inches, that shall be furnished by the department and on which shall be plainly visible the permit number. The permittee shall also place his or her name in a conspicuous position on the front or back of each sign. The failure of a sign to have such a label affixed to it is prima facie evidence that it is not in compliance with the provisions of this chapter.

Sec. 7. RCW 47.42.911 and 1971 ex.s. c 62 s 19 are each amended to read as follows:

This ((~~act~~)) chapter may be cited as the "Scenic Vistas Act ((~~of 1971~~))."