226.580. Unlawful signs defined--removal authorized--notice--owner may proceed, how--removal costs, how paid--review of order, how--order of removal--reimbursement to owner, when. - Missouri Statutes

Unlawful signs defined--removal authorized--notice--owner may proceed,how--removal costs, how paid--review of order, how--order ofremoval--reimbursement to owner, when.

226.580. 1. The following outdoor advertising within six hundredsixty feet of the right-of-way of interstate or primary highways is deemedunlawful and shall be subject to removal:

(1) Signs erected after March 30, 1972, contrary to the provisions ofsections 226.500 to 226.600 and signs erected on or after January 1, 1968,but before March 30, 1972, contrary to the sizing, spacing, lighting, orlocation provisions of sections 226.500 to 226.600 as they appeared in therevised statutes of Missouri 1969; or

(2) Signs for which a permit is not obtained or a biennial inspectionfee is more than twelve months past due; or

(3) Signs which are obsolete. Signs shall not be considered obsoletesolely because they temporarily do not carry an advertising message; or

(4) Signs that are not in good repair; or

(5) Signs not securely affixed to a substantial structure; or

(6) Signs which attempt or appear to attempt to regulate, warn, ordirect the movement of traffic or which interfere with, imitate, orresemble any official traffic sign, signal, or device; or

(7) Signs which are erected or maintained upon trees or painted ordrawn upon rocks or other natural features.

2. Signs erected after August 13, 1976, beyond six hundred sixty feetof the right-of-way outside of urban areas, visible from the main traveledway of the interstate or primary system and erected with the purpose oftheir message being read from such traveled way, except those signsdescribed in subdivisions (1) and (2) of section 226.520 are deemedunlawful and shall be subject to removal.

3. If a sign is deemed to be unlawful for any of the reasons set outin subsections 1 to 7 of this section, the state highways andtransportation commission shall give notice either by certified mail or bypersonal service to the owner or occupant of the land on which advertisingbelieved to be unlawful is located and the owner of the outdoor advertisingstructure. Such notice shall specify the basis for the allegedunlawfulness, shall specify the remedial action which is required tocorrect the unlawfulness and shall advise that a failure to take theremedial action within sixty days will result in the sign being removed.Within sixty days after receipt of the notice as to him, the owner of theland or of the structure may remove the sign or may take the remedialaction specified or may file an action for administrative review pursuantto the provisions of sections 536.067 to 536.090, RSMo, to review theaction of the state highways and transportation commission, or he mayproceed under the provisions of section 536.150, RSMo, as if the act of thehighways and transportation commission was one not subject toadministrative review. Notwithstanding any other provisions of sections226.500 to 226.600, no outdoor advertising structure erected prior toAugust 28, 1992, defined as a "structure lawfully in existence" or"lawfully existing", by subdivision (1), (2) or (3) of subsection 3* ofsection 226.550, shall be removed for failure to have a permit until anotice, as provided in this section, has been issued which shall specifyfailure to obtain a permit or pay a biennial inspection fee as the basisfor alleged unlawfulness, and shall advise that failure to take theremedial action of applying for a permit or paying the inspection feewithin sixty days will result in the sign being removed. Signs for whichbiennial inspection fees are delinquent shall not be removed unless thefees are more than twelve months past due and actual notice of thedelinquency has been provided to the sign owner. Upon application madewithin the sixty-day period as provided in this section, and accompanied bythe fee prescribed by section 226.550, together with any inspection feesthat would have been payable if a permit had been timely issued, the statehighways and transportation commission shall issue a one-time permanentpermit for such sign. Such signs with respect to which permits are soissued are hereby determined by the state of Missouri to have been lawfullyerected within the meaning of "lawfully erected" as that term is used inTitle 23, United States Code, Section 131(g), as amended, and shall only beremoved upon payment of just compensation, except that the issuance ofpermits shall not entitle the owners of such signs to compensation fortheir removal if it is finally determined that such signs are not "lawfullyerected" as that term is used in Section 131(g) of Title 23 of the UnitedStates Code.

4. If actual notice as provided in this section is given and neitherthe remedial action specified is taken nor an action for review is filed,or if an action for review is filed and is finally adjudicated in favor ofthe state highways and transportation commission, the state highways andtransportation commission shall have authority to immediately remove theunlawful outdoor advertising. The owner of the structure shall be liablefor the costs of such removal. The commission shall incur no liability forcausing this removal, except for damage caused by negligence of thecommission, its agents or employees.

5. If notice as provided in this section is given and an action forreview is filed under the provisions of section 536.150, RSMo, or ifadministrative review pursuant to the provisions of sections 536.067 to536.090, RSMo, is filed and the state highways and transportationcommission enters its final decision and order to remove the outdooradvertising structure, the advertising message contained on the structureshall be removed or concealed by the owner of the structure, at the owner'sexpense, until the action for judicial review is finally adjudicated. Ifthe owner of the structure refuses or fails to remove or conceal theadvertising message, the commission may remove or conceal the advertisingmessage and the owner of the structure shall be liable for the costs ofsuch removal or concealment. The commission shall incur no liability forcausing the removal or concealment of the advertising message while anaction for review is pending, except if the owner finally prevails in itsaction for judicial review, the commission will compensate the owner at therate the owner is actually receiving income from the advertiser pursuant towritten lease from the time the message is removed until the judicialreview is final.

6. Any signs advertising tourist-oriented type business will be thelast to be removed.

7. Any signs prohibited by section 226.527 which were lawfullyerected prior to August 13, 1976, shall be removed pursuant to section226.570.

8. The transportation department shall reimburse to the lawful ownersof any said nonconforming signs that are now in existence as defined insections 226.540, 226.550, 226.580 and 226.585, said compensationcalculated and/or based on a fair market value and not mere replacementcost.

(L. 1965 2d Ex. Sess. p. 900 § 9, A.L. 1972 S.B. 382, A.L. 1976 H.B. 1478, A.L. 1992 S.B. 652, A.L. 2002 H.B. 1196 merged with H.B. 1508)

*Words "subsection 2" appear in original rolls (S.B. 652, 1992).