The Texas Department of Transportation is considering opening a loophole in the state's billboard laws to allow billboards along certain highways to be as tall as 85 feet high, more than twice the current height limit, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
The Legislature in the recent session adjusted language in the state's transportation code that says the billboards 'existing on March 1, 2017' may not be higher than 85 feet, which is the height of a nine story building and more than twice the current limit of 42 feet.
Billboard companies like San Antonio based Clear Channel Outdoor say that will not open the door for higher billboards, simply grandfather billboards that are now in place.
But Anne Culver of the group Scenic Texas says the Texas Highway Commission, which has the final say on implementing the rules, is trying to change the language to allow new billboards up to 82 feet high.
She says that's not what Texans want.
"Billboard twice as high as they are now, standing standing higher than the tree line, jarringly inconsistent with the natural or built environment across Texas," she said.
Billboard companies have long complained that the state's height rules are 'outdated,' and point out that more than half the states have no height limit on billboards.
Many billboard groups say by imposing a height limit of 42 feet, they are losing out on advertising from companies which want their message to stand out at a time of increasing demands on the motorists, who are captivated by in car entertainment systems and passengers who are glued to their smart phones.
They say bigger billboards are also needed to compete with new road construction, which frequently includes highway on and off ramps which are more than 42 feet high, obscuring billboards.
Billboards are a $5 billion a year industry in Texas.Culver says this isn't the first time the billboard industry has tried to sneak in revised height limits.
"In 2014 the proposal was to 65 feet, and was shut down by TxDOT commissioners in the face of overwheling public comments," she said.
Culver says Scenic Texas is encouraging citizens to again speak out against proposed increasing heights for roadside billboards.