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DOT warns state could risk federal highway funds if Conway sign exemption becomes law
Summary
A proposed law to transfer a longstanding off‑premise sign near Exit 12 in 'Conquered' to a nonprofit for civic messages prompted a DOT warning that the bill as drafted would exempt the sign from outdoor‑advertising control statutes and could put the state in violation of the Highway Beautification Act, risking federal funding penalties.
A public hearing on SB 632, a bill to authorize transfer and limited civic use of a longstanding off‑premise advertising sign near Exit 12 (referred to in the transcript as 'Conquered'), produced a stark warning from the New Hampshire Department of Transportation.
Senator Tara Reen introduced the bill and explained it would allow a private owner to transfer the existing sign to a nonprofit or chamber of commerce and limit its use to civic and nonprofit messages that promote downtown events. Chamber president Briana Marcelo said the sign could help bring pass‑through motorists to downtown businesses and noted that modest, time‑limited commercial messages could help fund the device without using public money.
Lee Baronis, administrator of the Bureau of Traffic and head of DOT’s Office of Outdoor Advertising Control, told the committee that the bill as written appears to exempt the device from New Hampshire’s outdoor advertising statutes (RSA 236:69–88) and the federal Highway Beautification Act (23 U.S.C. 131) and therefore could place the state out of compliance with the 1971 federal‑state agreement. "Failure to fulfill the agreement may result in withholding up to 10% of the state's allocation of federal highway funds," Baronis said; he estimated that could equal tens of millions of dollars annually.
Baronis also noted the device is within 500 feet of an interstate interchange — a location the federal rules were designed to protect — and that federal highway officials have been made aware of the pending legislation. He described practical implications: exemptions would remove size, lighting, location and permitting controls, and DOT would be left to defer to local rules alone.
Committee members asked clarifying questions about the sign’s grandfathered status, whether the 2003 session law that previously addressed the device still applies, and under what conditions a sign that predates current regulation can be transferred or modernized. DOT said the sign's current permission stems from past session law and that changes raising the device from static to lit/changeable would attract federal scrutiny.
No executive action was taken; the committee closed the hearing and continued other business. DOT asked the committee to consider the federal implications before advancing any exemption.
Next steps: committee staff and sponsors will determine whether to revise the bill’s language to limit exemptions and preserve compliance with the Highway Beautification Act.
