Oregon Revised Statutes

Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735 (2026)

Exemptions from sign permit requirements; historic signs; rules

✓ current as of May 2026
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      377.735 Exemptions from sign permit requirements; historic signs; rules. (1) The permit requirements of ORS 377.700 to 377.844 do not apply to:

      (a) Signs of a governmental unit, including but not limited to traffic control signs or devices, legal notices or warnings.

      (b) A temporary sign on private property if:

      (A) The sign does not exceed 12 square feet;

      (B) The sign is not on a permanent base;

      (C) The sign does not remain in place for a period of more than 60 days in a calendar year, except that a sign erected by a resident on the resident’s residential property may remain in place for longer than 60 days in a calendar year;

      (D) No person receives compensation or anything of value as defined by the Department of Transportation by rule for displaying the sign; and

      (E) The sign complies with ORS 377.720.

      (2) The Department of Transportation may adopt rules that, for good cause shown, allow a person displaying a temporary sign to obtain a variance from the restrictions in subsection (1)(b) of this section. The department shall not consider the content of the sign in deciding whether to allow a variance.

      (3) The department shall adopt rules for the approval and preservation of historic signs. Rules adopted under this subsection may not be based on or allow consideration of the content of the signs.

      (4) The department shall adopt rules for the erection and maintenance of permanent signs that do not exceed six square feet and that provide messages for the safety or convenience of the public.

      (5) ORS 377.700 to 377.844 do not apply to a sign erected or maintained within a city more than 660 feet from the nearest edge of the right of way of a state highway, unless the sign is designed to be viewed primarily from the state highway. [1971 c.770 §14; 1973 c.790 §6; 1975 c.336 §5; 1977 c.265 §3; 1987 c.336 §5; 1993 c.741 §58; 1999 c.877 §7; 2007 c.199 §10]

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 10 cases, 1981–2020 · leading case: Outdoor Media Dimensions, Inc. v. Dep't of Transp., 132 P.3d 5 (Or. 2006).
Outdoor Media Dimensions, Inc. v. Dep't of Transp., 132 P.3d 5 (Or. 2006). · cites it 8× “ORS 377.735(1); Or. Laws 1999, ch. 877, § 7.”
Outdoor Media Dimensions Inc. v. State, 945 P.2d 614 (Or. Ct. App. 1997). · cites it 13× “” 2 ORS 377.735 provides exemptions from the permit requirement for 15 particular types of signs, including signs identifying bus stops, city signs showing times and places of church services and civic organization meetings, residential directional signs, official traffic…”
Lombardo v. Warner, 132 P.3d 22 (Or. 2006). · cites it 19× “First, ORS 377.735(1) contains the standards that govern temporary signs for which no variance is required.”
Outdoor Media Dimensions Inc. v. State, 20 P.3d 180 (Or. 2001). “See ORS 377.735 (listing certain exempt signs).”
Van v. Travel Info. Council, 628 P.2d 1217 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). · cites it 6× “The full text of the exemptions, ORS 377.735(1), is set out in the margin.”
Drayton v. Dep't of Transp., 62 P.3d 430 (Or. Ct. App. 2003). · cites it 5× “43 Is Exempt Under ORS 377.735 as a “Sign of a Governmental Unit” Petitioner next contends that the department erred in concluding that the sign at milepoint 118.”
Herson v. Driver & Motor Veh. Servs. Branch, 971 P.2d 492 (Or. Ct. App. 1998). “One of the arguments in petitioners’ third assignment of error 2 claims that, in permitting temporary political signs, but only for candidates and political committees, ORS 377.735(l)(o) violates Article I, section 20, of the Oregon Constitution.”
Clear Channel Outdoor, Inc. v. City of Portland, 262 P.3d 782 (Or. Ct. App. 2011). “705 that the purposes of the OMIA include ‘promoting] public safety,’ ‘preserving] the natural beauty and aesthetic features’ of state highways, and ‘prohibiting] the indiscriminate use of * * * outdoor advertising.”
Drayton v. Dep't of Transp., 149 P.3d 331 (Or. Ct. App. 2006). “ORS 377.735(l)(c). Under the OMIA, therefore, signs that advertise “off-premise” goods and services are subject to permit and fee requirements, while “on-premise” signs are not.”
Drayton v. Dept. of Transp., 464 P.3d 138 (Or. Ct. App. 2020). “765 (1999); ORS 377.735 (1999). Before 1999, plaintiff erected the disputed sign, which advertises off-premises activities,1 without first obtaining a permit.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(1) — 4 cases
Outdoor Media Dimensions, Inc. v. Dep't of Transp., 132 P.3d 5 (Or. 2006). “ORS 377.735(1); Or. Laws 1999, ch. 877, § 7.”
Van v. Travel Info. Council, 628 P.2d 1217 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “The full text of the exemptions, ORS 377.735(1), is set out in the margin.”
Lombardo v. Warner, 132 P.3d 22 (Or. 2006). “First, ORS 377.735(1) contains the standards that govern temporary signs for which no variance is required.”
Drayton v. Dep't of Transp., 62 P.3d 430 (Or. Ct. App. 2003). “43 Is Exempt Under ORS 377.735 as a “Sign of a Governmental Unit” Petitioner next contends that the department erred in concluding that the sign at milepoint 118.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(1)(c) — 1 case
Outdoor Media Dimensions, Inc. v. Dep't of Transp., 132 P.3d 5 (Or. 2006). “ORS 377.735(1); Or. Laws 1999, ch. 877, § 7.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(1)(k) — 1 case
Outdoor Media Dimensions Inc. v. State, 945 P.2d 614 (Or. Ct. App. 1997). “” 2 ORS 377.735 provides exemptions from the permit requirement for 15 particular types of signs, including signs identifying bus stops, city signs showing times and places of church services and civic organization meetings, residential directional signs, official traffic…”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(2) — 2 cases
Lombardo v. Warner, 132 P.3d 22 (Or. 2006). “First, ORS 377.735(1) contains the standards that govern temporary signs for which no variance is required.”
Van v. Travel Info. Council, 628 P.2d 1217 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “The full text of the exemptions, ORS 377.735(1), is set out in the margin.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(3) — 1 case
Van v. Travel Info. Council, 628 P.2d 1217 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “The full text of the exemptions, ORS 377.735(1), is set out in the margin.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(l)(a) — 1 case
Drayton v. Dep't of Transp., 62 P.3d 430 (Or. Ct. App. 2003). “43 Is Exempt Under ORS 377.735 as a “Sign of a Governmental Unit” Petitioner next contends that the department erred in concluding that the sign at milepoint 118.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(l)(b) — 1 case
Lombardo v. Warner, 132 P.3d 22 (Or. 2006). “First, ORS 377.735(1) contains the standards that govern temporary signs for which no variance is required.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(l)(b)(A) — 1 case
Lombardo v. Warner, 132 P.3d 22 (Or. 2006). “First, ORS 377.735(1) contains the standards that govern temporary signs for which no variance is required.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(l)(c) — 5 cases
Outdoor Media Dimensions, Inc. v. Dep't of Transp., 132 P.3d 5 (Or. 2006). “ORS 377.735(1); Or. Laws 1999, ch. 877, § 7.”
Lombardo v. Warner, 132 P.3d 22 (Or. 2006). “First, ORS 377.735(1) contains the standards that govern temporary signs for which no variance is required.”
Drayton v. Dep't of Transp., 62 P.3d 430 (Or. Ct. App. 2003). “43 Is Exempt Under ORS 377.735 as a “Sign of a Governmental Unit” Petitioner next contends that the department erred in concluding that the sign at milepoint 118.”
Clear Channel Outdoor, Inc. v. City of Portland, 262 P.3d 782 (Or. Ct. App. 2011). “705 that the purposes of the OMIA include ‘promoting] public safety,’ ‘preserving] the natural beauty and aesthetic features’ of state highways, and ‘prohibiting] the indiscriminate use of * * * outdoor advertising.”
Drayton v. Dep't of Transp., 149 P.3d 331 (Or. Ct. App. 2006). “ORS 377.735(l)(c). Under the OMIA, therefore, signs that advertise “off-premise” goods and services are subject to permit and fee requirements, while “on-premise” signs are not.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(l)(n) — 1 case
Outdoor Media Dimensions Inc. v. State, 945 P.2d 614 (Or. Ct. App. 1997). “” 2 ORS 377.735 provides exemptions from the permit requirement for 15 particular types of signs, including signs identifying bus stops, city signs showing times and places of church services and civic organization meetings, residential directional signs, official traffic…”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 377.735(l)(o) — 2 cases
Outdoor Media Dimensions Inc. v. State, 945 P.2d 614 (Or. Ct. App. 1997). “” 2 ORS 377.735 provides exemptions from the permit requirement for 15 particular types of signs, including signs identifying bus stops, city signs showing times and places of church services and civic organization meetings, residential directional signs, official traffic…”
Herson v. Driver & Motor Veh. Servs. Branch, 971 P.2d 492 (Or. Ct. App. 1998). “One of the arguments in petitioners’ third assignment of error 2 claims that, in permitting temporary political signs, but only for candidates and political committees, ORS 377.735(l)(o) violates Article I, section 20, of the Oregon Constitution.”
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