3 Best Practices for Regulating Political Signs in Your Condo or HOA
Election seasons these days never seem to end, with dozens of national, state, and local races and issues up for consideration in any given year and new campaigns that begin as soon as an election cycle ends. With all these races and protracted campaigns comes a proliferation of political signs in yards and homes in Michigan condos and HOAs. While some residents will consider the display of political signs to be a form of personal expression and the democratic process in action, other residents may consider them to be just another device intended to stir up anger and divide the community.
Many times Michigan condos and HOAs decide to either prohibit or restrict political signs within their communities. In some cases, they may be concerned about the impact political signs are having on the relationships among the neighbors in their community. In other cases, they may simply be concerned about the appearance the signs have on their community, such as when there are numerous signs posted in yards or signs that remain in yards long after an election has ended. Regardless of the reason, when regulating political signs within their communities, Michigan condos and HOAs must be careful not to overstep the bounds of their authority or to favor one view over another, either intentionally or accidentally. When a Michigan condo or HOA decides to regulate political signs within their community, we recommend that they consider the 3 best practices below.
Best Practice #1: Review your governing documents to determine whether you can prohibit or regulate political signs in members’ yards.
The first step that a Michigan condo or HOA board should take is to review their governing documents and verify that they can either prohibit or regulate signs on their members’ properties. Generally, the Michigan condo or HOA will have the authority to control the community’s common areas and issue rules and regulations on their use so the board can adopt a policy prohibiting political signs from being posted on the common areas. However, if a Michigan condo or HOA board wants to prohibit or regulate political signs that are displayed or posted in members’ yards and homes, there will need to be language in the governing documents permitting them to do so. Typically, this language will more generally address signs and state that signs are not allowed unless approved in writing by the board.
If the governing documents do allow the Michigan condo or HOA board to prohibit or regulate signs, the board will need to decide which path it will choose. For some Michigan condos and HOAs, deciding to prohibit all signs, with the exception of for sale signs, may be the preferred option because it eliminates all political signs and avoids any potential claims in the future that members with certain political views are being unfairly targeted. Regardless of the option the board chooses, some members may push back and argue that the Michigan condo or HOA is violating their freedom of speech; however, this argument is unlikely to be successful.
If there is no language within the governing documents that allows the Michigan condo or HOA to prohibit or regulate political signs that are displayed or posted in members’ yards or homes, the board may not be completely out of options. Some local municipalities have ordinances restricting the size or number of political signs that can be displayed and the number of days before an election when they can be posted so those Michigan condos and HOAs should look and see if there are any local laws they can rely on.
Best Practice #2: Adopt uniform, neutral rules and regulations regarding political signs.
If a Michigan condo or HOA decides to regulate, and not prohibit, political signs, then the board should adopt uniform, neutral rules and regulations that can be applied to all political signs, regardless of the political view or content.
Examples of uniform, neutral rules and regulations include:
(1) how many days before an election the signs can be put up;
(2) how many days after an election the signs must be taken down;
(3) prohibitions against explicit language or obscene images;
(4) a maximum number of signs that can be posted; and
(5) a restriction on areas where signs can be posted to prevent movement and sight obstructions.
To avoid claims that members with certain political views are being unfairly targeted or silenced, Michigan condo and HOA boards should avoid adopting rules and regulations that focus on the content of the signs, such as prohibiting political signs supporting certain candidates or concerning particular races or issues, with the limited exception of prohibiting explicit language and obscene images.
Best Practice #3: Uniformly and consistently enforce your political signs rules and regulations.
Adopting uniform, neutral political signs rules and regulations is an important first step for Michigan condo and HOA boards but just as important is to uniformly and consistently enforce those rules and regulations across the entire community. Similar to the creation of these rules and regulations, Michigan condo and HOA boards will want to avoid claims that members with certain political views are being unfairly targeted in the association’s enforcement of its policy. Accordingly, Michigan condo and HOA boards should ensure that they are enforcing the political signs rules and regulations against all the members within the community who have violated it, and not just a select few.
Takeaways
Political signs within some communities can be a positive expression of speech and democracy while in others it can be a source of conflict and community division. Michigan condo and HOA boards can navigate the terrain of prohibiting and regulating political signs within their community by following the 3 best practices discussed above and contacting attorneys knowledgeable in community association law for further guidance on how to tailor a policy to fit the needs and dynamics of their community.
Kayleigh B. Long is a Member at Hirzel Law, PLC and focuses her practice in the areas of community association law and appellate litigation. Ms. Long obtained her Juris Doctor degree from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, where she graduated in the top 5 of her class and served as the Senior Executive Editor on the Indiana Law Review. Ms. Long has been recognized as a Michigan Rising Star in Real Estate Law by Super Lawyers since 2020, an award given to no more than 2.5% of the attorneys in the State of Michigan. Ms. Long has also made numerous presentations on community association law, along with having articles published in the Michigan Real Property Review. She can be reached at (248) 478-1800 or klong@hirzellaw.com.
