February 5 may seem a long way off, but for local media it already feels like money in the bank.

A bill in the California Senate would move the date of the state presidential primary elections to the first Tuesday in February instead of March. Putting the contest earlier in the electoral season increases its national relevance and that, in turn, will result in candidates and parties spending more money here, according to industry experts.

“Campaigns will have no choice but to saturate the California media markets, since nobody can shake 37 million hands,” said Sherri Annis, president of political consulting firm Fourth Estate Strategies in Washington, D.C. “Of course, the richest, best-known candidates will be the only ones left standing.”

“It should bring money into California that hasn’t been here in past presidential elections,” said Jean Brooks, executive vice-president in charge of political media buying at Palisades Media Group, a buying firm in Santa Monica. She added that the increase would be “dramatic” because in the past, candidates spent very little money on California primaries.

“It’s really going to affect non-political advertisers,” predicted Pam McNeely, Media Director at ad agency Dailey & Associates in West Hollywood. “This has serious implications for retailers who advertise post-holiday sales to make up for pre-holiday slumps.”

In Sacramento, the date-changing bill has passed the Assembly and awaits a Senate vote, where passage looks likely. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has publicly stated his intention to sign it.

Federal regulations require that broadcasters give federal candidates the “lowest unit rate” for ads, meaning the same rate their best advertisers obtain. That price restriction holds for 45 days prior to the election. Counting back from February 5, the rule will go into effect a few days before Christmas.

In the past, stations have avoided giving discounts to advertisers during the period before the 45 days. Moving up the primary date “tends to cause stations to manipulate the numbers even more,” according to Sherman Oaks-based political consultant Arnold Steinberg.

McNeely explained that consumers have come to expect big sales after Christmas, and traditionally the last week of December and January was the most economical time of the year to advertise. But adding politics to the equation “will impact the retailer’s ability to advertise at a huge price break.” It will also hurt national consumer advertisers, such as automakers and packaged good distributors, who took advantage of the low prices to jump-start the year.

Because December will establish the benchmark “lowest unit rate,” political campaigns will have to pay premium dollar, too. “It makes it that much more expensive,” said Annis. “They call California the big enchilada, because of its 55 electoral votes, but now it’s more like a fast-food enchilada. Everything is speeded up.”

Theoretically campaigns could start advertising during the holidays, but “I can guarantee that no political candidate in California will advertise during the Christmas season,” said Brooks. “It would make more sense to come in during the first quarter.”

Political strategists will have to re-think how they spend money. The traditional frontrunner states in presidential politics Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina have relatively low prices for TV, the medium of choice for politicos. In contrast, Los Angeles ranks as the second most expensive media market in the country. Therefore, California’s shift to the early season would seem to give an advantage to more established big-money candidates.

But Steinberg noted that for TV stations and other media outlets, ballot measures represent the big prize, since they aren’t affected by federal price limits. Under the new election schedule, some ballot measures would qualify for the Feb. 5 election. Another primary election, for all non-presidential offices, would occur on June 3. Then there is the general election on Nov. 4.

Such a schedule could end up exhausting sources for funding in California, Annis said. Secretary of State Debra Bowen also warned that “holding three statewide elections in the span of 10 months will present a challenge to local elections officials, poll workers and voters.”

During the 2006 election, campaigns spent a record $500 million in California, more than double the amount in 2004. The tally for 2008 should set another record, but media experts hope that the dizzying numbers will force campaigns to get more original in their communications.

“My hope is that it all isn’t just dollars I think somebody who buys smart can still have an impact,” said Brooks.

Steinberg said the new schedule would put a premium on both the creative message in the ads and the ability of campaigns to get so-called free media on newscasts and talk shows.

“Press aides will have to think up creative ways to draw attention to their candidate now more than ever,” agreed Annis.