Minneapolis Sign Hanger and Billboard Erector Bond
What it is & who requires it
Sign hangers and billboard erectors working in Minneapolis. The most valuable thing to know here is that you have a choice, and the city says so on its own license page: a sign hanger needs an eight thousand dollar bond from the city or from the state, and the page links both forms. The state legislature set its sign contractor bond at the same figure and made it stand in lieu of any compliance bond a local unit of government requires, so a company working Minneapolis alone can file with the city, and a company working several Minnesota cities files once with the state and is done. That equivalence stops at the boundary of the trade, and the boundary is worth reading: the state defines a sign narrowly as a device, structure, fixture or placard erected on the premises of an establishment identifying it or what it offers. Off-premise advertising is not that. The city’s own page reflects the difference exactly — sign painters, who fall under the separate billposting article, need a ten thousand dollar bond from the city, and no state alternative is offered for it. A company doing both holds both licenses and both bonds, because the ordinance says in terms that the billposting license is in addition to the sign hanger’s license.
Obligee: City of Minneapolis (Business Licenses and Consumer Services, Community Planning and Economic Development). Citation: Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 277.2500 (Insurance, bond — the applicant shall furnish a surety bond to the city in the sum of eight thousand dollars running to the city for the benefit of and to protect any person for whom such work shall be done from loss or damage arising out of the licensee’s failure to comply with any specifications pertaining to such work, the use of inferior materials, incompetent work, failure to pay for labor and materials, and to guarantee the full and proper performance of all contracts entered into; approved as to form and execution by the city attorney before a license may be issued); § 277.2480 (Application for license, as required by section 109.10); § 277.2510 (Issuance of license upon execution of the bond); § 277.2530 (When licenses expire; transfer — December first of each year; not transferable or assignable); Title 13, ch. 277, Article XIV (Sign Hangers and Billboard Erectors); Code 1960 As Amend. § 325.030; 2002-Or-066, §§ 8, 11–12; 2013-Or-176, § 7, 12-6-13; Minn. Stat. § 326B.865(b) (the state sign contractor bond is in lieu of any compliance bond required by a local unit of government).
Bond amount
The required bond amount is $8,000.
How to get it
This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
Request a bond quote
Tell us about the bond and the project. A licensed producer follows up — these bonds are individually underwritten, so they are not issued instantly.
Term & renewal
Term: Held with the sign hanger’s or billboard erector’s license and conditioned to guarantee the full and proper performance of all contracts entered into for the work, running to the city but for the benefit of the person for whom the work is done.
Renewal: Annual — licenses issued under the article expire on the first of December and are neither transferable nor assignable.
Filing
Filed with the licensing official with the application, and approved as to form and execution by the city attorney before the license issues. The figure renders because the ordinance states a flat sum, names a surety bond, and offers no cash or deposit route. The condition is broader than faithful performance: it reaches failure to comply with specifications, the use of inferior materials, incompetent work and failure to pay for labor and materials, and guarantees the full and proper performance of all contracts entered into. Public liability insurance runs alongside at limits stated in the same section, with an endorsement in the form the general licensing chapter prescribes and ten days’ written notice of cancellation to the licensing official; letting the insurance lapse is itself a ground for revocation. If the state route is taken instead, the state filing is biennial with its own filing fee, the company then appears in the department’s online database, and cities check that lookup rather than holding a bond of their own.
Source
Verified against the obligee source (last checked 2026-09-07).
Related Minnesota bonds
Frequently asked questions
- Who requires the Minneapolis Sign Hanger and Billboard Erector Bond?
- It’s required by City of Minneapolis (Business Licenses and Consumer Services, Community Planning and Economic Development) (Minneapolis Code of Ordinances § 277.2500 (Insurance, bond — the applicant shall furnish a surety bond to the city in the sum of eight thousand dollars running to the city for the benefit of and to protect any person for whom such work shall be done from loss or damage arising out of the licensee’s failure to comply with any specifications pertaining to such work, the use of inferior materials, incompetent work, failure to pay for labor and materials, and to guarantee the full and proper performance of all contracts entered into; approved as to form and execution by the city attorney before a license may be issued); § 277.2480 (Application for license, as required by section 109.10); § 277.2510 (Issuance of license upon execution of the bond); § 277.2530 (When licenses expire; transfer — December first of each year; not transferable or assignable); Title 13, ch. 277, Article XIV (Sign Hangers and Billboard Erectors); Code 1960 As Amend. § 325.030; 2002-Or-066, §§ 8, 11–12; 2013-Or-176, § 7, 12-6-13; Minn. Stat. § 326B.865(b) (the state sign contractor bond is in lieu of any compliance bond required by a local unit of government)). Sign hangers and billboard erectors working in Minneapolis. The most valuable thing to know here is that you have a choice, and the city says so on its own license page: a sign hanger needs an eight thousand dollar bond from the city or from the state, and the page links both forms. The state legislature set its sign contractor bond at the same figure and made it stand in lieu of any compliance bond a local unit of government requires, so a company working Minneapolis alone can file with the city, and a company working several Minnesota cities files once with the state and is done. That equivalence stops at the boundary of the trade, and the boundary is worth reading: the state defines a sign narrowly as a device, structure, fixture or placard erected on the premises of an establishment identifying it or what it offers. Off-premise advertising is not that. The city’s own page reflects the difference exactly — sign painters, who fall under the separate billposting article, need a ten thousand dollar bond from the city, and no state alternative is offered for it. A company doing both holds both licenses and both bonds, because the ordinance says in terms that the billposting license is in addition to the sign hanger’s license.
- How much is the Minneapolis Sign Hanger and Billboard Erector Bond?
- The bond amount is $8,000.
- How do I get the Minneapolis Sign Hanger and Billboard Erector Bond?
- This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
- What is the term?
- Held with the sign hanger’s or billboard erector’s license and conditioned to guarantee the full and proper performance of all contracts entered into for the work, running to the city but for the benefit of the person for whom the work is done. Renewal: Annual — licenses issued under the article expire on the first of December and are neither transferable nor assignable.
- Is this bond insurance for me?
- No. It protects the obligee and the public — not you. If a valid claim is paid, you repay the surety.
- How is this requirement verified?
- We verify it against the obligee’s primary source (last checked 2026-09-07); the source link is on this page.
