Press Releases
Latta Says No to Sign Mandate that Raises Costs for Localities
Washington, D.C. ,
September 28, 2011
Under a new standard by the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHA) Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), counties and townships are required to replace traffic and street signs with new reflective signs by 2015 and 2018. In a letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Congressman Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green) opposes such a mandate and supports a recently proposed change to the rule which would end the sign-replacement requirement. “During hard economic times, it is simply unreasonable for the federal government to order deadlines that force the replacement of road signs that are still safe and operational,” said Congressman Latta. In the letter, Congressman Latta mentions how the rule without the proposed amendment would force a township in the Fifth Congressional District to use upwards of 21 percent of their entire road repair and sign replacement budget. Additionally, Congressman Latta is co-sponsor of H.R. 2257, which would allow localities to meet the new standards by replacing current signs at the end of their life cycle instead of forcing arbitrary deadlines for replacement on compliance. A copy of the letter can be found here. |