2026-09-27 · Federal · Legislation · Pending — not yet law

What happened. A bill introduced June 4, 2026 would, if enacted, create a Small Business Administration loan program aimed at community associations' common areas after natural disasters. H.R. 9159, the Protect Our Homes Act, sponsored by Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) with Rep. Jimmy Patronis (R-FL), was referred to the House Small Business Committee and has had no further action.¹²

What the bill would do

The bill would establish a “Residential Common Area Repair Loan program” with two kinds of loans — repair loans and mitigation loans.³

• Who qualifies. An organization “the membership of which is comprised of each owner of a dwelling unit of a single residential community” that manages common areas and enforces community rules. “Dwelling unit” includes “a house, townhouse, or condominium.”
• What qualifies. Repairs to residential common areas from “water damage, wind damage, and fire damage” caused by a natural disaster, and mitigation work in areas that had a declared disaster within the past five years.
• Terms. Up to $500,000 (up to $2,000,000 for a borrower that is a major local employer), terms up to 30 years, and no collateral for loans of $14,000 or less.
• A limit. The loans are supplemental: available once the association has reached its limit under the regular SBA disaster-loan program.

The gap it targets

Federal disaster assistance is organised around individual households and public entities. Association-owned common areas — private roads, clubhouses, seawalls, shared building systems — frequently fall between those categories, and repairs are typically funded from reserves, insurance and special assessments. The Community Associations Institute has described associations with private roads as unable to access FEMA-funded debris removal and listed H.R. 9159 among its 2026 priorities.⁴

Related bills

Two other association-related disaster bills are pending. The Disaster Assistance Fairness Act (H.R. 834 / S. 352) would define common interest communities, condominiums and housing cooperatives in the Stafford Act and authorize debris removal there; it has not moved since early 2025.⁵ A separate bill extending the window to appeal FEMA decisions cleared committee in September; see the related article linked below.

What to watch next

• A Small Business Committee markup or a Senate companion bill.
• The end of the 119th Congress on January 3, 2027, after which unpassed bills must be reintroduced.

Related: House committee advances bill extending FEMA appeal window to 90 days.

1. H.R. 9159 (119th Cong.), bill status, GovInfo ↩
2. Rep. Soto, press release on the Protect Our Homes Act ↩
3. H.R. 9159 (119th Cong.), introduced text ↩
4. Community Associations Institute, FEMA update (June 10, 2026) ↩
5. H.R. 834 (119th Cong.), bill status, GovInfo ↩