Supreme Court to Release Decision on Sign Code Case
Any day now, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on a hotly debated sign ordinance case out of Arizona. The outcome of this case is extremely important to cities and towns all across the country.
Reed v. Town of Gilbert challenges a sign code that limits the size and number of temporary signs on a church’s property. It also questions how long those signs can stay up. Is this ordinance a freedom of speech violation as it pertains to the church? That’s the question our nation’s highest court heard arguments on back in January 2015. A decision is expected to come down within the next few weeks, possibly the next few days.
The lawsuit was filed by Pastor Clyde Reed in 2007. He claims the ordinance targeted his Good News Community Church and violates the church’s First Amendment rights. Reed states that Gilbert, which is a suburb of Phoenix, makes “content-based” distinctions in its sign code. He uses political signs as an example, as those temporary signs can be larger and stay in place for a longer period of time.
The church was first cited for violations in 2005 and after years of legal battles, the U.S. Supreme Court finally heard the case a few months ago. The International Sign Association’s Government Relations team is keeping a close eye on the Supreme Court and will provide a prompt response and analysis of its decision. For more information about this case, please contact ISA’s David Hickey.
