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House approves substitute bill clarifying how cities, counties can end nonconforming uses after floor debate
Summary
A substitute to Senate Bill 49, which creates a uniform method for cities and counties to terminate nonconforming uses and includes special provisions for billboards, passed the House after extended floor debate over compensation and impacts on homeowners and businesses.
Representative Harwood pushed the substitute to Senate Bill 49 as a compromise to clarify how local governments terminate nonconforming uses, telling colleagues: "This bill deals with nonconforming uses, and ... it provides methods and a better understanding of how a city or a county may terminate a nonconforming use." He said the measure standardizes options for cities and counties — including condemnation with just compensation or an amortization formula that lets owners recover their investment over a reasonable period.
The bill drew sustained questioning from members who said its language could affect homes and small businesses. Representative Rosler warned of possible unfair results for longtime homeowners, describing a hypothetical where a 50-year-old owner "bought her house 50 years ago and paid $4,000 ... It's now worth a hundred and $50,000" and asked whether the bill could force such residents to lose part of their homes under local rezoning. Representative Harwood replied that taking property for a road or similar public project would still be handled through eminent domain and compensation: "You take by condemnation. You pay the value of the land." He added the bill does not change how cities treat residences in those rare situations.
Other members pressed the sponsor about details that distinguish billboards from other nonconforming uses, including how amortization should account for operating costs and whether fair market value or investment recovery should control compensation. Harwood said the statute treats billboards differently because they are revenue-producing: "If you're talking about a billboard ... it is a business. It is a revenue producing item, and it is a question of fair market value." He emphasized that the substitute was negotiated with the League of Cities and Towns, Salt Lake City and County, Davis County and the sign industry.
Critics such as Representative Smedley argued the measure risks stripping longstanding private-property rights and urged colleagues to oppose the bill. Supporters said the substitute brings county and city procedures into alignment and requires compensation when governments end nonconforming uses.
The House recorded a roll tally on the substitute senate bill 49: 39 affirmative, 26 negative; the bill passed and will be transmitted for the Speaker's signature and further Senate action.
The next procedural step is transmission to the Senate for any further action recorded in the journal.
