The Governor has signed five bills that affect HOAs.  These bills will go into law September 19, 2007.

• H.B. 2254:  Homeowners’ Associations: Telecommunication Vehicles.  HB 2254 exempts telecommunications employees from citation or fine by their homeowner’s association (HOA) for parking a qualified work vehicle at their residence if: 1.  They are responsible for emergency deployment for repair and maintenance of their company’s infrastructure; 2. The vehicle weighs less than 20,000 pounds and is marked with an official emblem.
• H.B. 2503:  Homeowners’ Associations:  Cautionary Signs. HB 2503 specifies that a planned community cannot prohibit the use of cautionary signs regarding children, under certain stipulations, if signage is:  1.  Being used and displayed in residential areas only; 2. Removed within one hour of children ceasing to play; 3.  Only displayed when children are within fifty feet of the cautionary sign; 4. No taller than three feet in height; and 5. Professionally manufactured or produced.
• S.B. 1062:  Homeowners’ Association: For Sale Signs. SB 1062 denies an association the authority to prohibit the indoor or outdoor display of a for sale sign and a sign rider. It stipulates that:  1. A condominium association cannot prohibit the indoor or outdoor display of a for sale sign, including for sale by owner signs, by a unit owner on that owner’s property; 2. Specifies that a planned community association cannot prohibit the indoor or outdoor display of a for sale sign by an association member on that member’s property, including signs that indicate for sale by owner; and 3. Requires for sale signs to be in conformance with industry standards in relation to size restrictions, specifying that the sign cannot exceed 18 by 24 inches and the sign rider cannot exceed six by 24 inches.
• S.B. 1254:  Real Property; Signage: Solar Devices.  SB 1254 denies an association the authority to revoke or modify the approval of a commercial sign once the sign has been previously approved by the association.  In addition, SB1254 states that no association can prohibit the installation or use of a solar energy device, but allows an association to adopt reasonable rules regarding the placement of solar energy devices.  It   stipulates that:  1. Once an association of a planned community has approved a commercial sign, including its registered trademark that is located on properties zoned for commercial use in the planned community, the association and any subsequently elected board of directors cannot revoke or modify the sign’s approval as long as the owner or operator of the sign has received approval from the local or county governing body; 2. An association of a planned community cannot prohibit the installation or use of a solar energy device as defined in A.R.S. § 44-1761; 3. An association can adopt reasonable rules regarding the placement of a solar energy device as long as the adopted rules do not impair the functioning of the device,  unreasonably restrict its use or adversely affect the cost or efficiency of the devices; and 4. Requires that the court award reasonable attorney fees and costs to any party who substantially prevails in litigation against an association’s Board of Directors as it relates to these provisions.
• S.B. 1328: Recorded Liens:  Invalid Documents. SB 1328 prohibits the recording of certain nonconsensual liens or consensual liens not accompanied by the debtor’s signature acknowledging the filing and recording of the lien. Further it:   1.  Prohibits nonconsensual liens other than liens recorded by governmental entities or political subdivisions from being recorded unless the lien is accompanied by an order or judgment from a court or competent jurisdiction authorizing the filing of the lien; 2. Requires that liens be accompanied by the notarized signature of the debtor on a document acknowledging the filing and recording of the lien before it can be recorded; and 3. Specifies that a recording officer or county is not liable for accepting any lien.  

Copies of the bills, as well as summaries of the legislation, are available in the GVCCC office and on the Arizona Legislature website at:  http://www.azleg.gov