Adopt a Highway Program: courtesy signs.

Existing law provides that the Department of Transportation may enter into an agreement with a person or group to clean up litter alongside a section of state highway and to post a courtesy sign identifying the group who is providing the litter abatement services. This bill would require the department to notify and obtain the approval, as specified, of the local governing body which has jurisdiction over the area where a sign would be placed in order to post a courtesy sign identifying a group that is providing the litter abatement. The department would also be required to post the notice of the application on its Internet Web site for access by the public. The local governing body would have a specified time limit to act on the application request and the approval could not be unreasonably withheld. Because this bill would require local governments to consider for approval each application for a highway courtesy sign within their jurisdiction, it would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.