As the United States prepared to celebrate its 250th anniversary, a California homeowners association tried to stop two residents from flying American flags outside their homes, inewsource reported.
The dispute has turned a long-running display into a legal fight, with experts telling the outlet that the homeowners may have the law on their side.
What happened?
In San Marcos, homeowner Amy Cooke told inewsource her HOA has ordered her to remove the American flag she has displayed outside her townhome for about 20 years, warning that she could be fined $100 if she refuses.
Cooke said she and neighbor Terri Collins are the final two residents still pushing back as they head into HOA hearings over the issue, per the outlet. Inewsource notes their homes are in a 112-unit townhome complex overseen by the Ambiance Homeowners Association, which enacted a 2024 rule barring residential flag displays.
The homeowners' position may be supported by both federal and state law, legal experts told the outlet. Federal protections cover a resident's ability to display the U.S. flag, while California law places limits on how much an HOA can regulate noncommercial flags in spaces set aside for a homeowner's exclusive use.
Michael Kushner, an Aliso Viejo attorney who specializes in HOA matters, suggested to inewsource that the association is "barking up the wrong tree" and that "the law is crystal clear." The duo's long history of sporting the flags could also help them, inewsource noted.
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Why does it matter?
Cooke and Collins told the publication that, for them, the flag is meant to honor relatives who served in the military, including family members killed in war, rather than to make a political statement.
"There's a significant difference between some random flag for whatever you support and the American flag," Cooke explained to inewsource. "It's not just a flag. It's a symbol."
The HOA's opposition to flags started with a San Diego Padres flag from another resident they wanted to remove, the outlet noted. Expanding a ban to all flags seems like another example of overreach that HOAs are unfortunately infamous for.
HOAs around the country have drawn criticism for blocking or delaying money-saving home improvements such as rooftop solar panels, heat pumps, and native plant lawns, which can reduce water use and maintenance costs.
Restrictions like these can prevent homeowners from lowering utility bills or making more climate-friendly choices. The best move is to often try to work with HOAs to change the rules, but sometimes that isn't feasible.
In Cooke and Collins' case, their HOA's current stance threatens a tradition for their families that stretches back decades, as inewsource described.
What's being done?
The two homeowners are still contesting the rule through the HOA's internal hearing process, and both told the publication they would rather pay any penalty and then try to recover the money in small claims court than take down their flags.
Ambiance HOA did not respond to requests for comment. Both Cooke and Collins are steadfast in their right to fly the flag.
"I'm not going to stop," Cooke told inewsource. "It's clear that I have the right to fly the American flag."
Collins was equally firm in comments to the publication: "Forty-two years of my life, my husband and I hung a flag … I'm not taking my flag down."
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