Billboard Tax Faces City Council Hearing

A city council committee is set to give a hearing to a proposed billboard tax that could mean $1 million in revenue for Baltimore.

At 10 a.m., Thursday at City Hall, the Baltimore City Council’s Taxation, Finance and Economic Development Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on the tax.

The idea of taxing billboards is not new, Councilman Bill Henry has proposed the tax twice before, but it’s the first time the expected revenue from the tax has been included in a proposed budget, indicating Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s support.

In February, Henry said his proposal, which would have charged a tax of $5 per 10 square foot for outdoor advertising and larger than 10 feet and $15 per square foot for electronic advertising, was defeated previously by lobbyist opposition and administrative indifference.

 "It was the lobbying of Clear Channel [who owns most city billboards] of council members that killed it," Henry said at the time.

The bill, submitted on behalf of the administration, would tax electronic advertising at $15 per square foot and traditional billboard advertising at $5 per square foot.

The legislation argues the tax is necessary because "unregulated display of outdoor advertising constitutes a public nuisance that imposes costs on the city beyond those cause by other activities by harming the health, safety, convenience, and welfare of city residents."