Background
The City of Atlanta adopted a sign code in 1982 that required permits for most signs but exempted certain content-based categories like campaign signs. In 2015, the city amended the code to remove content-based restrictions but retained a provision limiting off-site signs. A state court later ruled that a sign operator’s pre-2015 signs were not lawfully nonconforming because they violated the 1982 code’s off-site sign restrictions. The city ordered the signs removed, leading to a federal lawsuit challenging the 1982 code as unconstitutional.
The court’s reasoning
The Eleventh Circuit held that the plaintiffs lacked standing to mount a facial challenge against the entire 1982 sign code because they only suffered injury under subsection seven, which regulated off-site signs. The court determined that subsection seven was content-neutral under the Supreme Court’s decision in City of Austin v. Reagan National Advertising of Austin, LLC, because it distinguished signs based on location rather than subject matter. Since the district court incorrectly applied strict scrutiny to a content-neutral provision, the appellate court vacated the summary judgment and remanded for the district court to apply the correct narrow tailoring standard.
What it means going forward
The ruling clarifies that regulations distinguishing between on-premises and off-premises signs are content-neutral, requiring a lower level of scrutiny than content-based restrictions.