Residents of homeowners associations in Arizona will soon be free to fly flags supporting law enforcement, regardless of any rules to the contrary.
Ditto banners honoring firefighters, other first responders, and families who lost loved ones in the military.
Gov. Doug Ducey signed House Bill 2010 on Monday, which expands, a bit, the list of flags HOAs cannot restrict in their communities.
State Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, has successfully pushed various bills over the years to trim HOA powers to govern flags and banners under external appearance rules.
As a result, HOA rules can’t restrict the flying of the American flag, flags honoring branches of the military, the POW/MIA flag, the state flag, the flag of any Arizona tribe and the Gadsden flag. The last has the familiar coiled rattlesnake with the caption ‘’Don’t tread on me.’’
This year, Kavanagh said, he got a complaint from someone whose HOA would not let her fly a flag promoting first responders.
The result was HB 2010.
As the measure moved through the Legislature, Kavanagh got new complaints from those who wanted to display Gold Star family banners for loved ones lost in combat. Others sought to note they are Blue Star families having someone in the service.
They were added on.
Dennis Legere of the Arizona Homeowners Coalition told legislators that’s all well and good but there’s no reason for HOAs to decide what banners are and are not acceptable.
Kavanagh responded, “I would certainly support a bill that said you can fly whatever flag you want as long as it wasn’t obscene or promoting illegal activity.”
But the veteran lawmaker said that’s just not politically in the cards. “I don’t believe the votes are there,’’ he said, noting he would need the backing of more than half the 60 representatives and 30 senators.
So he instead pushed through what he could this year rather than load HB 2010 down with issues that would doom the entire measure.
That doesn’t mean this new law is the last word. “As people report abuses to me, I try and correct them,’’ Kavanagh said.
The selectivity of the legislation has been at the center of debate for years, however.
“Why is a ‘supporting law enforcement’ flag OK, but, for example, a ‘pride’ flag is not OK?’’ unless specifically approved by an HOA, asked Sen. Martin Quezada, D-Glendale, when Kavanagh tried to expand the list of acceptable flags last year.
“Why is a ‘supporting law enforcement’ flag OK but supporting a Black Lives Matter flag is not OK?” Quezada asked.
