Keith

We must decide whether a federal consent decree bars the erection of outdoor advertising displays along the Interstate 105 freeway in Los Angeles County.

I

Robert L. Kudler, an advertising billboard developer, appeals the district court’s entry of a preliminary injunction prohibiting the State of California Department of Transportation, Gary W. Bush, James W. Van Loben Seis, and their agents (collectively, “Cal-trans”) from issuing any permit to Kudler, in accordance with a state superior court order under the California Outdoor Advertising Act (“COAA”), Cal. Bus. & Prof.Code §§ 5200, et. seq. (West 1996), that would allow him to place billboards or other outdoor advertising displays along the Interstate 105 freeway (“1-105”) 1 in Los Angeles County. This action in federal district court sought to enforce the Final Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”) filed on July 21, 1977 and the Final Amended Consent Decree (“Consent Decree”) filed on September 22,1981.

The Consent Decree and EIS, together, formed a settlement agreement which permitted federal and state officials to proceed with the construction of 1-105, and plaintiffs in turn were assured that the defendants would…