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Policy & Advocacy - Truth vs. Myths
Myth #1: The Highway Beautification Act (HBA) was created to get rid of billboards
The HBA was designed to regulate billboards, not eliminate them
The HBA intended billboards to be located in commercial and industrial zones
"Advertising has a vital place in our economy," said President Lyndon Johnson, White House Conference on Natural Beauty, May 25, 1965.
Myth #2: Overall, people hate billboards
Most people say billboards provide useful information to travelers (Arbitron, 2002)
American public opinion has been steady for more than three decades, supporting regulation but not elimination of billboards (Dr. Charles R. Taylor, Professor of Marketing, Villanova University, 2002)
More than four out of five people feel digital billboards provide an important public service (Arbitron, 2008)
Myth #3: Billboard bans help tourism in places like Vermont
Tourism in Vermont and Maine (no billboards) has lagged the rest of the country and similar-sized states (William Lilley III, iMapData, 2001)
Loss of billboards causes immediate, significant economic harm to roadside businesses that rely on directional advertising
Most billboard advertising promotes local business; the travel-tourism sector is the Number One buyer of outdoor advertising
Myth #4: Most localities ban billboards
Regulation - not prohibition - is the norm
Four out of five localities provide opportunities for the construction of billboards (Survey of local ordinances conducted by Cleveland State Law Professor Alan C. Weinstein)
Myth #5: Billboards distract drivers, causing traffic safety problems
Billboards - even the most attention-getting billboards - do not affect driver behavior (Dr. Suzanne Lee, Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, 2004)
Comprehensive studies of accident data show that digital billboards have no statistical relationship with the occurrence of accidents (Tantala Associates, 2007 and 2009)
Digital billboards are safety-neutral from the driver standpoint (Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, 2007)
The federal government says tri-action billboards do not pose safety problems (FHWA, re amended Oregon state-federal agreement, Federal Register, April 2, 2002)
Myth #6: Billboards light up the skies at night
Most sky glow - some 96 percent - is produced by sources other than billboards.
Digital billboards are equipped with sensors so that lighting levels are adjusted for surrounding conditions to avoid glare
Myth #7: Amortization is just compensation
Amortization is an arbitrary time allotment, not compensation
Longstanding federal policy mandates cash compensation for billboards removed by government along federal roads
44 states protect against amortization of billboard assets along state and local roads
Amortization is slow-motion confiscation (George F. Will, May 9, 1991)
Myth #8: Billboards are devices to promote vices: Smokes, sin and sex
Since the 1999 settlement agreement, cigarette makers have not advertised their brands via outdoor formats
The outdoor industry's code features an anti-obscenity clause and a 500-foot buffer from schools, parks, and places of worship)
OAAA member companies have adopted policies against accepting sexually-oriented business ads
Myth #9: Billboards don't pay taxes
Billboards are heavily taxed and heavily regulated
Billboard operators pay state, local and federal taxes
In addition to generating tax income for government, billboards also produce revenue via permit fees
Myth #10: Scenic Byways ban billboards
Federal policy "segments" scenic byways, allowing billboards in commercial and industrial areas
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