Finally, Alcohol Ads Ban Reaches LA City Council

BILLBOARD BLIGHT-Beer and liquor ads on bus shelters and other items of street furniture have long been a common feature of the Los Angeles streetscape, but their demise moved closer to reality this week when the City Attorney sent an ordinance banning alcohol advertising on public property to the City Council. 

But even if the council approves the ban, its major effect won’t be immediately seen, since the current street furniture contract that allows such ads won’t expire for another seven years. So barring the unlikely event that the city re-negotiated that contract to include the ban, alcohol ads will still be seen on lighted signs at approximately 3,500 of the city’s transit stops until a new contract is approved. 

The alcohol ads ban, proposed by former city councilman Richard Alarcon in 2011, cites a report by the LA County Department of Public Health putting the total economic cost of alcohol use in the county at $10.8 billion. That includes costs for law enforcement and other emergency services, medical care, substance abuse programs, and productivity losses related to alcohol abuse. 

The report also found that exposure to alcohol advertising “influences beliefs of youth about alcohol and their intention to drink, and that reducing alcohol advertising in public places and in areas commonly seen by minors reduces youth exposure to alcohol advertising.” 

While the ordinance would ban alcohol ads on street furniture after expiration of the current contract with CBS/Decaux, some other public properties would be exempted. These include the city’s airports, the Los Angeles harbor, and property controlled by the Department of Water and Tower. The ordinance also exempts city-owned property used as restaurant, concert, or sports venues where the sale and consumption of alcohol is allowed. That would include such venues as the Greek Theater in Griffith Park, downtown Convention Center, and yet-to-be-built Farmers Field professional football stadium. 

The ordinance was the subject of several public hearings by two City Council committees—Public Safety and Budget & Finance. During those hearings, it was reported that CBS/Decaux had estimated total revenue from alcohol ads at $2-3 million annually, which translated to a loss of $400,000 to $600,000 annually to the city if the ads were prohibited. However, that estimated loss didn’t take into account the fact that much of that ad space could likely be sold to other advertisers. 

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Budget and Finance committee members asked for a further report on the potential revenue loss, including the experience of other cities such as San Francisco and Philadelphia that have enacted alcohol ad bans. The committee also asked for more detailed information on the projected revenue figures and the potential offsets to any losses.  That report to be prepared by the city’s Chief Legislative Analyst has not been submitted to the City Council. 

Passage of an alcohol ads ban has been pushed by a coalition of more than 30 community groups involved in issues of substance abuse and public health, led by Alcohol Justice, a California-based non-profit advocating on alcohol issues nationwide. There has been no publicly organized opposition to the ban.

 

(Dennis Hathaway is the president of the Ban Billboard Blight coalition.  He can be reached at: [email protected]) 

-cw

 

 

 

CityWatch

Vol 12 Issue 91

Pub: Nov 11, 2014