Who paid for the city re-elect billboards? The billboard company

• Also notable about Whitburn's billboard: It's at Midway Drive and West Point Loma Boulevard — not in District 3, which Whitburn represents.

What they're saying: Not much.

• Three spokespeople for Outfront Media did not respond to requests for comment on the company's interest in city government, and they haven't disclosed any lobbying contacts with city officials.
• But the company did disclose its spending for Gloria and Whitburn in three campaign filings this month, stating the billboards would remain until Election Day on March 5.

By the numbers: Gloria's billboards cost $24,820 and Whitburn's cost $15,800, per Outfront's disclosures.

• Heather Ferbert, a city attorney candidate, has spent a comparable $20,671 through her campaign on multiple billboards around town.

Between the lines: Outfront couldn't have made donations of that size directly to Gloria or Whitburn's re-election committees.

• The city's ethics ordinance bars candidates from taking donations from businesses and sets contribution limits for individuals at $750 for City Council and $1,350 for mayoral candidates.

Zoom out: The billboard and outdoor advertising industry in which Outfront operates is heavily regulated.

• As the Union-Tribune reported in a 2022 feature, the U.S. Supreme Court in 1981 upheld the city's tough laws, which have prevented any new billboards in the city in 40 years.
• Each summer, downtown hotels turn themselves into giant billboards for Comic-Con, choosing to pay fines while basking in the city's moment in the spotlight.