It has only been about a week since political campaign signs could go up for the August primary election and by extension the fall General Election. Already there is a good deal of discussion regarding what can go where.

Since the US Supreme Court handed down its decision in Reed v. Gilbert in 2015, most jurisdictions took a new look at their sign regulations to determine what needed to be changed to comply with the decision. The bottom line on the Reed decision is that content cannot be regulated. For most of the five years since the decision staff with the Town of Fountain Hills has worked diligently to bring its sign ordinance into compliance with the law. Ultimately a final version of changes was approved last fall.

Courts have long held that speech may be constrained by time place and manner, which is primarily what the sign ordinance attempts to do.

The state has its own version of how political signs are regulated, but it must also comply with the court’s decision.

Town Development Services Director John Wesley said that since signs began going up about 10 days ago, code enforcement officers have paid particular attention to those in the town’s right-of-way, and they are being removed if they are in violation. Wesley said he does not plan to remove signs placed in yards and other private property, however, violations will be brought to the attention of the property owner.