H-2084.1
HOUSE BILL 2371
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2024 Regular Session
By Representatives Cheney and Walen
Read first time 01/15/24. Referred to Committee on State Government
& Tribal Relations.
1 AN ACT Relating to clarifying the rules surrounding the removal
2 of political advertising; amending RCW 29A.84.040; and creating a new
3 section.
4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
5 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that current law
6 allows the removal of signs that are not lawfully placed. The
7 legislature believes that a sign is not placed "lawfully" if it
8 remains in place after any deadline for removal provided by law. The
9 legislature intends to add language clarifying this common sense
10 proposition in order to remove any possible confusion about the
11 interpretation of current law.
12 Sec. 2. RCW 29A.84.040 and 2003 c 111 s 2104 are each amended to
13 read as follows:
14 A person who removes or defaces lawfully placed political
15 advertising including yard signs or billboards without authorization
16 is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable to the same extent as a
17 misdemeanor that is punishable under RCW 9A.20.021. For purposes of
18 this section, political advertising is not "lawfully placed" if it
p. 1 HB 2371
1 remains in place past any deadline for removal provided by law. The
2 defacement or removal of each item constitutes a separate violation.
--- END ---
p. 2 HB 2371


Statutes affected:
Original Bill: 29A.84.040