Rockdale County, GA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Minimum message duration
- 10 seconds fixed per message
- Transition speed
- 2 sec. electronic, 3 sec. mechanical
- Spacing rule
- 5,000 ft. from another digital billboard
- Max digital area
- 30% of max permitted sign area
- Brightness cap
- 5,000 nits day, 100 nits night
- Malfunction requirement
- Must freeze in fixed position on failure
Summary
Rockdale County allows digital billboards as 'multiple message billboards' under Code § 230-21(i), but each message must hold for at least ten seconds and change within two seconds electronically. Section 230-13 caps brightness at 5,000 nits by day and 100 nits between sunset and sunrise, or 0.3 footcandles over ambient light, whichever is brighter.
Maximum brightness levels for electronic or digital LED signs shall not exceed 5,000 nits during the daylight hours or 100 nits between sunset and sunrise, as those times are determined by the National Weather Service, or 0.3 footcandles over ambient light conditions, whichever is brighter. ... (1)Each sign shall remain fixed for at least ten seconds. If the message is changed mechanically, the transition shall be accomplished within three seconds. If the message is changed electronically, the transition shall be accomplished within two seconds;(2)No such sign shall be located closer than 5,000 feet to another multiple message billboard on the same side of the interstate;(3)Any such sign shall contain a default design that will freeze the sign in one position if a malfunction occurs;
Full Breakdown
Digital or LED billboards fall under the 'multiple message billboard' category and are regulated by § 230-21(i), which layers extra restrictions on top of the county's general billboard standards (672 square feet per face, 48 feet in height, interstate-adjacent nonresidential zoning only). Under § 230-21(i)(1), each message must remain fixed for at least ten seconds; a mechanical transition must complete within three seconds and an electronic transition within two seconds. No multiple message billboard may sit closer than 5,000 feet to another multiple message billboard on the same side of the interstate, per § 230-21(i)(2), and every unit must carry a default design that freezes the display in one position if it malfunctions, per § 230-21(i)(3).
Flashing, intermittent or moving illumination is barred whenever the sign is in a fixed position, and the sign cannot emit sound audible from the main traveled way. 3 footcandles over ambient light, whichever reading is brighter. Nits are measured from the sign's control system or its face; footcandles are measured five feet up, viewed head-on, from the nearest property line or 100 feet, whichever is closer. If the Department of Planning and Development finds a digital billboard causing glare or a safety hazard, the owner must correct the fixture within 24 hours of notice.
Violations & Fines
Digital billboard violations are enforced under § 230-24 alongside the rest of the sign chapter: the director may order corrective adjustments, and if the sign owner does not comply within the notice period, the county can have the sign brought into compliance or removed at the owner's cost. A Magistrate Court conviction carries a fine of $25 to $1,000, up to 180 days' confinement, or both, with each day of continued violation charged separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long must a digital billboard message stay on screen in unincorporated Rockdale County?
How close together can two digital billboards be built along the interstate?
What brightness limits apply to a Rockdale County digital billboard at night?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Rockdale County
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