THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE RESOLUTION

INTRODUCED BY LAWRENCE, BLOOM, CLYMER, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, DENLINGER, EVANKOVICH, EVERETT, FARRY, GABLER, GEIST, GILLEN, GRELL, HARHART, HENNESSEY, HORNAMAN, HUTCHINSON, METCALFE, METZGAR, MILLARD, ROAE, ROSS, STABACK, SWANGER AND TOEPEL, AUGUST 10, 2011

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, AUGUST 10, 2011  

A RESOLUTION

Memorializing the Congress of the United States to address

concerns raised by recent regulations promulgated by the

Federal Highway Administration concerning road and street

signs.

WHEREAS, The Federal Highway Administration recently drafted

regulations requiring state and local municipalities to upgrade

post-mounted road signs by the year 2015, and street signs by

the year 2018, to meet Federal retroreflectivity standards,

replace street signs other than white on green, white on blue or

white on brown and utilize "mixed case" lettering in the

manufacture of all new or replacement street signs; and

WHEREAS, The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has thousands of

municipalities that maintain local roadways for the use of the

general public; and

WHEREAS, The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania recognizes and

values the importance of noninterference of the Federal

Government in matters left to the states, as eloquently stated

in the tenth amendment to the Constitution of the United States;

and

WHEREAS, Various municipalities across the Commonwealth of

Pennsylvania maintain street signs made of wood, porcelain, cast

iron, cast aluminum or other materials, use street signs with

nontraditional colors, such as the team colors of the local high

school, or utilize signs with all capital letters, and these

signs often have significant local community and historical

value; and

WHEREAS, The financial cost to comply with the aforementioned

unfunded Federal mandates would be borne entirely by local

municipalities and would unnecessarily result in the removal and

destruction of thousands of usable signs; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania memorialize the Congress of the

United States to urge the Federal Highway Administration to

draft regulations that are reasonable and not burdensome to

local municipalities, to rescind the aforementioned unfounded

and unfunded regulations immediately and to allow local

municipalities to determine for themselves the materials, colors

and fonts appropriate for road signs of local use; and be it

further

RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to

the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the

United States House of Representatives, the Majority Leader of

the United States Senate, the Minority Leader of the United

States Senate, the Majority Leader of the United States House of

Representatives, the Minority Leader of the United States House

of Representatives, the United States Secretary of

Transportation, the Federal Highway Administrator, the Secretary

of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and each member

of Congress from Pennsylvania.