Commercial Free Schools Act – San Francisco, CA

In June 1999, San Francisco became the largest school district yet to approve policies on commercialism in schools.

TheAct requires all long-term corporate sponsorships to be approved by the Board of Education. It also prohibits teachers from using corporate sponsored educational materials, including Channel One and ZapMe.

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Ban on Textbook Advertising – California

In September 1999, the state of California passed AB 116, banning commercial images in public school textbooks. AB 116 is a strong law, according to the Center for Commercial-Free Public Education. It backs up a California State Dept. of Education policy already on the books, prohibiting advertising in textbooks.… Read More

Ban on Advertising to Children – Sweden

Advertisements may not come immediately before or after a program or a portion of a program which is oriented primarily to children under 12 years of age, insofar as there isn’t any question of messages addressed in § 8 [JB: § 8 deals with "unsponsored" transmissions, e.g., public service announcements].… Read More

Ban on Advertising to Children – Norway

Children and adolescents are increasingly becoming target groups for aggressive forms of marketing practices and for commercial pressure with a view to stimulate and increase their consumption. One reason for this is that they play an important role as consumers. In addition, children and adolescents have a vital role in choices concerning consumption in the family economy. At the same time, consumer goods are becoming more important factors in shaping the identities of children and youngsters. This means that minors are concerned with the symbolic value of objects and that their perception of these factors are more important than the actual functions of objects. We see too many examples of commercial interests that cynically exploit the uncertainty children and adolescents feel about their identity and self-esteem.… Read More

Municipal Telecommunications Enabling Legislation – Maine

In late-May 2005, Maine’s governor signed LD 1128, which clarifies local government authority to offer Internet services. The act also instructs the State Planning Office to study the “economic, technological and funding issues associated with municipalities providing wireless Internet services to their communities.” … Read More

Landscape Ordinance – Chicago

In July 1999 significant amendments were added to Chicago’s landscape ordinance, making it stricter. For instance any new parking lot of 3,000 square feet or more was required to install landscape islands and trees within the lot. New parking lots of 1,200 square feet or more that are visible from a public right-of-way were required to surround themselves with 2-to-4 foot hedges. In addition, a shade tree must be planted for every 25 feet of new building frontage in most commercial and residential neighborhoods. In addition, the city has embarked on a tree-planting campaign, with the intention of planting 500,000 more trees over the next five years.… Read More

Light Pollution – Tucson/Pima County, AZ

In the heart of downtown Tucson, Arizona, a city of nearly 500,000, one can view the Milky Way with the naked eye. Tucson and Pima County first adopted outdoor lighting ordinances in 1972 in an effort to provide standards so that night lighting did not interfere with nearby astronomical observatories. The lighting control ordinance of Tucson/Pima County has been revised many times over the years. The 2006 Code is still quite strong and it is copied below.… Read More

Jet-Ski and Personal Watercraft Regulations – New York

In 1999 New York adopted legislation to enable municipalities to regulate the use of jet skis and other personal watercraft on local waters. Using the public hearing process, any town in the state can pass an ordinance to prohibit the use of jet skis. All bans must not prevent access to federally maintained and designated waterways.… Read More

Noise Pollution – Amplified Noise Ordinances

Many communities have enacted laws defining maximum levels for amplified noise (similar to muffler laws for autos). City governments can amend the community noise ordinance to add these provisions, enact a whole new ordinance that includes these provisions, or enact this law to stand alone. The only real difference is the distance from the the noise source from which a violation is determined, which varies between 25 and 150 feet in most ordinances.… Read More

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