This time by passing a law that effectively nullifies any condominium or homeowners association that regulates the display of the American flag:
The Senate has approved a measure that would override rules set by homeowners’ associations and other groups that limit displays of the American flag, clearing the way for President Bush to sign it into law. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Roscoe G. Bartlett, a Republican from Western Maryland, passed the House last month. Maryland has a similar law, passed in 2004, as do several other states.
I wrote about this law last month and about the issue in January, where I said:
The Constitutions of the United States and Virginia do protect an individual rights to freedom of speech, but they only protect it against the action of the state. There is no such thing as a right to free speech that applies to private entities. If you are on my property, I have the right to stop you from engaging in speech that would otherwise be protected if you were on your property or if I were a police officer. And this is where POA?s come in.
POA?s are entirely a creation of contract. Groups of homeowners come together and form an organization that will accomplish certain goals. Typically, this includes maintaining some standard rules of esthetics for the community, contracting for trash removal, and maintaining property that is owned by the POA members in common rather than by any one person.
When you buy a house that is part of a POA, you agree to certain rules and regulations. These rules can be as mundane as what day you put your trash can out or what color you can paint or front door. Or, they can be as rigid as telling you that you cannot put a sign of any kind in your front yard. In fact, if your front yard is actually POA property, which is true of many townhouse communities here in Northern Virginia, then the property really isn?t yours anyway.
I hope that someone has the courage to challenge this in Court and that it ends up getting overturned, but I am not entirely optimistic on either count.
July 25th, 2006 at 12:20 am
Carnival of Liberty 55
A little light this week. Possibly because I suck at publicizing, but anyway, here goes.
One Man Bandwidth talks about the impending Chinese ban on organ trafficking for anything other than medical research, and how it might actually backfire.
I hate…