Colorado § 43-1-408 - Application for permit - contents - rules.

§ 43-1-408. Application for permit - contents - rules.

(1) Application for a permit for each advertising device must be made on a form provided by the department, signed by the applicant or the applicant's duly authorized officer or agent, and include:

(a) The name and address of the owner of the advertising device;

(b) The type, location, and dimensions of the advertising device, and such other pertinent information as may be prescribed;

(c) The name and address of the lessor of property upon which the device has been or will be located and a copy of the lease agreement or letter of consent;

(d) Repealed.

(e) An agreement by the applicant to erect and maintain the advertising device in a safe, sound, and good condition; and

(f) (I) For all devices erected on or after July 1, 1981, certification from the local zoning administrator or authority that the advertising device conforms to local zoning requirements or a copy of a local government permit for the device;

(II) For devices erected prior to July 1, 1981, an affidavit from the sign owner that the advertising device was lawfully erected under local law.

(2) Upon the department's receipt of a complete application for a permit which satisfies each of the requirements in subsection (1) of this section and otherwise meets the department's conditions, the department has thirty days to issue, by first-class mail to the address provided by the applicant, either a permit or a preliminary decision denying the application for permit.

(3) The applicant may appeal any preliminary decision denying the application for a permit by requesting a hearing in writing within thirty days of the department mailing the notice of the denial of the application for a permit to the applicant. If the applicant timely appeals, the matter must proceed in accordance with the "State Administrative Procedure Act", article 4 of title 24, though the department may, by rule, create procedures for expedited review of denials and issuance of final agency decisions if the applicant consents to the expedited review.

Source: L. 81: Entire part R&RE, p. 2011, § 1, effective July 1. L. 2021: IP(1) and (1)(e) amended, (1)(d) repealed, and (2) and (3) added, (SB 21-263), ch. 388, p. 2591, § 5, effective June 30.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 43-1-414 as it existed prior to 1981.

ANNOTATION

The Outdoor Advertising Act and its accompanying rules are not unconstitutionally vague and do not operate as a prior restraint on speech. The act and its rules can be understood by a person of ordinary intelligence and contain adequate constraints against discriminatory or arbitrary application. Streetmediagroup, LLC v. Stockinger, 79 F.4th 1243 (10th Cir. 2023).

First, the act provides people of ordinary intelligence a reasonable opportunity to understand what conduct it prohibits. The conduct covered by the act is clear: An individual or entity erecting or maintaining for-compensation signs visible from a state highway must acquire a permit. Second, the act and its accompanying rules outline what must be included in a permit application; provide a deadline for decision-making; and create an administrative right of appeal. The rules supply nine reasons for which a permit must be denied and five reasons for which a permit may be denied. Streetmediagroup, LLC v. Stockinger, 79 F.4th 1243 (10th Cir. 2023).

Applicant for a permit under this act bears burden of establishing by a preponderance of the evidence that all conditions for the permit have been satisfied. Orsinger Outdoor Adv. v. State Dept. of Hwys., 752 P.2d 55 (Colo. 1988).