Alabama HOA Political Signs

Section 1: Overview — How political signs are regulated in Alabama HOAs

Alabama has no statute restricting a homeowners' association's regulation of political or campaign signs, so display rights come down to each community's recorded declaration rather than state law. The state's association statutes stay silent on the subject: the Alabama Homeowners' Association Act (Ala. Code § 35-20-1 et seq.)¹ for planned communities, the Alabama Uniform Condominium Act of 1991 (Ala. Code § 35-8A-101 et seq.)² for post-1991 condominiums, and the predecessor Condominium Ownership Act (Ala. Code § 35-8-1 et seq.)³ for pre-1991 condominiums contain no political-sign provision. The First Amendment doesn't constrain an Alabama HOA's sign rules, because an association is a private entity created by contract, not a government actor, and covenant enforcement counts as private contractual action. The Constitution of Alabama of 2022 contains a free-expression clause, Art. I, § 4,⁴ but no Alabama appellate decision has applied it to a private HOA's sign restrictions, so covenants get enforced as private contracts. This places Alabama among the CC&Rs-primary states, where the declaration controls, in contrast to protective-statute states such as California, Texas, Arizona, and Washington, which bar associations from banning political signs while still allowing reasonable time, place, and manner rules. What follows lays out the statutory framework, the constitutional limits, the role of the declaration, the operational rules that flow from it, and Alabama's national position.

Section 2: The legal framework for political signs

2A. Statutory protection in Alabama, and its absence

Alabama hasn't enacted any political-sign protection for HOA residents. No provision of Alabama law prohibits an association from restricting or banning political or campaign signs, and none guarantees an owner the right to display one. The statutes governing Alabama associations address formation, governance, assessments, and records — not signs. The Alabama Homeowners' Association Act (Ala. Code § 35-20-1 et seq.), effective January 1, 2016, governs planned communities and requires associations formed on or after that date to organize as nonprofit corporations and file their governing documents with the Secretary of State (Ala. Code § 35-20-5);⁵ it contains no sign provision. Condominiums created on or after January 1, 1991 fall under the Alabama Uniform Condominium Act of 1991 (Ala. Code § 35-8A-101 et seq.), and pre-1991 condominiums fall under the Condominium Ownership Act (Ala. Code § 35-8-1 et seq.); neither addresses political signs. The consequence follows directly: with no statute on point, the recorded declaration is the controlling authority for political signs in an Alabama community.

That result contrasts with the protective-statute model. In California, Civil Code § 4710(a) provides that "the governing documents may not prohibit posting or displaying of noncommercial signs, posters, flags, or banners on or in a member's separate interest, except as required for the protection of public health or safety or if the posting or display would violate a local, state, or federal law," subject to size limits allowing prohibition of signs and posters larger than nine square feet and flags or banners larger than fifteen square feet (§ 4710(c)).⁶ Texas (Property Code § 202.009),⁷ Arizona (A.R.S. § 33-1808),⁸ and Washington (RCW 64.38.034)⁹ impose comparable limits on associations. Alabama has adopted none of these, so nothing in state law overrides a declaration's sign terms.

2B. The First Amendment and the state constitution

The First Amendment limits government action, not the conduct of private parties. Its protections apply only where there's state action. An Alabama homeowners' association is a private entity created by a recorded declaration, a contract among owners, and its enforcement of that contract is private action, not government action. As a result, the First Amendment doesn't constrain an Alabama HOA's sign rules, and an owner can't invoke it to defeat a covenant that limits or bans political signs. This is the most common error in lay and law-firm-blog treatments of the topic. The correct rule holds that the constitutional free-speech guarantee runs against the state, while the association's authority runs from the declaration.

The distinction between government sign regulation and HOA regulation also explains why two frequently cited Supreme Court decisions don't help an owner here. Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015) and City of Austin v. Reagan National Advertising (2022) concern the content-neutrality of municipal sign codes. They constrain city governments, not private associations, and they provide no basis to challenge an HOA's sign rules.

A minority of states have read their own constitution's free-speech clause to reach private community associations. New Jersey stands as the leading example: in Mazdabrook Commons Homeowners' Ass'n v. Khan, 210 N.J. 482, 46 A.3d 507 (2012), the New Jersey Supreme Court held, on facts involving a candidate fined for two window and door campaign signs, that "balancing the minimal interference with Mazdabrook's private property interest against Khan's free speech right to post political signs on his own property, we conclude that the sign policy in question violates the free speech clause of the State Constitution."¹⁰ Alabama hasn't followed that path. The Constitution of Alabama of 2022 contains a free-expression provision, Art. I, § 4, but no Alabama appellate court has applied it to a private HOA's sign restrictions. Absent such authority, Alabama covenants get enforced as private contracts, and the state-action principle controls.

2C. The role of CC&Rs and permissible restrictions

Because no statute sets a floor, the recorded declaration is the operative rulebook for political signs in an Alabama community. The order of precedence runs from any applicable statute (none is on point for signs in Alabama) to the recorded declaration, then the bylaws, then board rules adopted under the governing documents. Under the Homeowners' Association Act, where a conflict exists the declaration prevails over other governing documents (Ala. Code § 35-20-8).¹¹ The board's authority to act, including any authority over signs, extends only to what the declaration and governing documents authorize (Ala. Code § 35-20-11).¹²

Alabama courts construe restrictive covenants according to the intent of the parties expressed in the language of the instrument, and they resolve ambiguities in favor of the free use of property (Lange v. Scofield, 567 So. 2d 1299 (Ala. 1990)).¹³ A sign restriction is therefore most defensible when it's clearly stated in the recorded declaration or in rules validly adopted under it, when it was adopted in conformity with the governing documents, and when it's enforced consistently across the community. Selective or inconsistent enforcement invites challenge.

Even without a sign statute, an Alabama association may typically regulate, through its declaration or validly adopted rules, where a sign may be placed (an owner's own lot versus common areas the association controls), the size and number of signs, the duration of display, and safety or right-of-way concerns such as sight-line obstruction. As a risk frame, a rule keyed to a sign's message or viewpoint sits more vulnerable to a selective-enforcement or bad-faith claim than a neutral rule addressing time, place, and manner — even though Alabama imposes no statutory content-neutrality standard. The operational point for owners and managers stays consistent: in Alabama, whether a given sign may be posted is found in the community's recorded declaration, read against the general governance provisions of the HOA Act or the condominium acts, not in a sign statute.

Section 3: Operational rules for Alabama associations

Because Alabama has no political-sign statute, the rules below flow from the recorded declaration and the general governance provisions of the Homeowners' Association Act or the condominium acts, not from a sign-specific statute. Where a rule rests only on the declaration, that's noted.

A. What an association may not do

• An association may not enforce a sign restriction that isn't grounded in a validly adopted and, where required, recorded governing document; authority over an owner's conduct runs from the declaration and governing documents, not board preference (HOA Act § 35-20-11;¹² parallel principle for condominiums under § 35-8A-302¹⁴). Applies to both.
• An association may not enforce a sign rule selectively or in a discriminatory manner; Alabama courts resolve covenant ambiguities against the restriction and in favor of free use, which exposes inconsistent enforcement to challenge (Lange v. Scofield).¹³ Applies to both.
• Alabama imposes no statutory prohibition on banning or restricting political signs, so the operative limits are the declaration plus general covenant-enforcement law, not a sign statute. Applies to both.

B. What an association may regulate

• Through its declaration or validly adopted rules, an association may regulate placement, size, number, duration of display, and safety or visibility concerns, to the extent the governing documents so provide (HOA Act § 35-20-11; condominiums § 35-8A-302). Applies to both.
• For a condominium, the unit owners' association's powers, including rulemaking, are exercised subject to the declaration (§ 35-8A-302). Condominium status.

C. Enforcement and fining constraints

• Before assessing a penalty for a covenant or rule violation, a planned-community board must give the member an opportunity to be heard and to be represented by counsel before the board (§ 35-20-11).¹² Planned-community status.
• A condominium association may levy reasonable fines for violations of the declaration, bylaws, and rules only after notice and an opportunity to be heard (§ 35-8A-302).¹⁴ Condominium status.
• In a planned community, a penalty assessed under the HOA Act is treated as an assessment for lien purposes, so procedural care matters (§§ 35-20-11, 35-20-12).¹⁵ Planned-community status.
• Self-help removal of a sign is constrained by the declaration and general law; an association acting outside its documented authority risks liability, and the safer course is the notice-and-hearing process before enforcement. Applies to both.

D. Rule adoption and disclosure

• For associations governed by the Homeowners' Association Act, governing documents, including the covenants, must be filed with the Secretary of State, and rules affecting owners should be adopted under the authority the declaration confers (§ 35-20-5).⁵ Planned-community status.
• Under the Act, where the declaration conflicts with other governing documents, the declaration prevails, so a sign rule inconsistent with the declaration is unenforceable to that extent (§ 35-20-8).¹¹ Planned-community status.
• An association should maintain records of adopted rules and enforcement actions; the HOA Act requires associations to maintain records available to members (§ 35-20-13),¹⁶ and condominium associations keep records under the Uniform Condominium Act. Applies to both.

Section 4: Recent legislative and judicial activity

A. Recent bills

No bill in the past 24 months, covering the 2024, 2025, and 2026 Alabama regular sessions, would create or affect political-sign rules for Alabama HOAs. Legislative attention to community associations in this window has centered on condominium declaration procedures and real estate matters, not signs. Senate Bill 246 (2026 Regular Session), sponsored by Senator Arthur Orr, addresses consumer protection against unsolicited investment-oriented real property solicitations and unfair service contracts, and would have authorized the Alabama Securities Commission to investigate and impose civil penalties; it doesn't concern political signs, and it was indefinitely postponed on April 7, 2026, without becoming law.¹⁷ No qualifying political-sign bill exists.

B. Recent rulings

No published decision from the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals or the Alabama Supreme Court in the past 36 months has addressed an HOA's regulation of political or campaign signs. Recent association-related appellate decisions have concerned other issues, such as condominium foreclosure notice and the relative-hardship defense to enforcement of a setback covenant, not signs. The topic remains governed by recorded declarations.

C. Active legislative debates

No active proposal would create a political-sign protection for Alabama HOA residents. Absent legislative change, the declaration continues to control.

Section 5: National positioning and related coverage

Alabama sits in the CC&Rs-primary category for political signs. States generally fall into two broad groups on this topic. The first is protective-statute states, which bar associations from prohibiting political signs while still allowing reasonable time, place, and manner rules: California (Civil Code § 4710), Texas (Property Code §§ 202.009 and 202.0091), Arizona (A.R.S. § 33-1808, which bars an association from prohibiting a member's political sign except before 71 days ahead of a primary or after 15 days past the general election), and Washington. The second is CC&Rs-primary states with no sign statute, where the declaration controls, including Alabama, Alaska, and Mississippi. For a multi-state operator, the practical implication is that Alabama supplies no uniform statutory floor, so each community's declaration must be read individually to determine what's allowed. Owners and boards commonly raise the First Amendment against an HOA, but the correct rule holds that it doesn't apply to a private association's sign rules.

This coverage updates quarterly as the Alabama Legislature and the state's courts act. Federal frameworks, including the Fair Housing Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, and the FCC's OTARD rule, apply to Alabama associations regardless of the state framework, while the federal First Amendment doesn't supply a basis to challenge an HOA's sign rules.

Footnotes

1. Ala. Code § 35-20-1, Short Title, Alabama Homeowners' Association Act (Alabama Legislature, official Code of Alabama) ↩
2. Ala. Code § 35-8A-101, Short Title, Alabama Uniform Condominium Act of 1991 (Alabama Legislature) ↩
3. Ala. Code § 35-8-1, Short Title, Condominium Ownership Act (Alabama Legislature) ↩
4. Constitution of Alabama of 2022, Art. I, § 4, Freedom of speech and press (Alabama Legislature) ↩
5. Ala. Code § 35-20-5, Organization of Associations; Filing Requirements; Rulemaking Authority; Organizational Documents (Alabama Legislature) ↩ ↩
6. Cal. Civ. Code § 4710, Display of Noncommercial Signs, Posters, Flags, or Banners (California Legislative Information) ↩
7. Tex. Prop. Code § 202.009, Regulation of Display of Political Signs (Texas Constitution and Statutes, official) ↩
8. A.R.S. § 33-1808, Flag display; political signs; caution signs; for sale, rent or lease signs; political and community activities; definitions (Arizona Legislature, official) ↩
9. RCW 64.38.034, Political yard signs—Governing documents (Washington State Legislature, official) ↩
10. Mazdabrook Commons Homeowners' Ass'n v. Khan, 210 N.J. 482, 46 A.3d 507 (2012) (Supreme Court of New Jersey) ↩
11. Ala. Code § 35-20-8, Priority of Declaration (Alabama Legislature) ↩ ↩
12. Ala. Code § 35-20-11, Powers of Board (notice and opportunity to be heard before assessing penalties) (Alabama Legislature) ↩ ↩ ↩
13. Lange v. Scofield, 567 So. 2d 1299 (Ala. 1990) (restrictive covenants strictly construed; doubts resolved in favor of free use of property) ↩ ↩
14. Ala. Code § 35-8A-302, Powers of Unit Owners' Association (reasonable fines after notice and opportunity to be heard) (Alabama Legislature) ↩ ↩
15. Ala. Code § 35-20-12, Liens for Unpaid Assessments (Alabama Legislature) ↩
16. Ala. Code § 35-20-13, Records (Alabama Legislature) ↩
17. SB246, 2026 Regular Session, as introduced (Alabama Legislature); status indefinitely postponed April 7, 2026 ↩