The Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005 (HR 42) was signed into law by President Bush on July 24, and the measure went into effect that day. First introduced in January 2005, the bill was passed by the House of Representatives on June 27. The U.S. Senate followed suit by unanimous consent on July 17.

CAI's Public Policy

HR 42 complies substantially with CAI's Public Policy entitled "Display of the American Flag" which provides:  CAI strongly supports the elimination of community association restrictions that prohibit the display of a reasonably sized, removable American flag from a resident's exclusive use or limited common element areas, so long as the flag is displayed in accordance with the Federal Flag Code as amended.  CAI further believes that community associations—not a state law—are best suited to determine the appropriate size, placement and installation of a flag pole.

Provisions of HR 42

HR 42 has been reported in the press to ban associations from prohibiting the flying of the American flag.  However, that is an overly broad interpretation of the provisions of the bill.  The legislation does prohibit an association from adopting or enforcing a policy or agreement that "would restrict or prevent a member of the association from displaying the flag of the United States on residential property within the association with respect to which such member has a separate ownership interest or a right to exclusive possession or use"

Importantly, the law also provides the following limitations:

• Flags must be displayed consistent with the provisions of the Federal Flag Code, or any rule or custom pertaining to the proper display or use of the American flag.
• Community associations may place reasonable restrictions pertaining to the time, place, or manner of displaying the American flag necessary to "protect a substantial interest" of the community association.

View the text of HR 42—the Freedom to Display the American Flag Act of 2005 (MS Word) as signed into law by President Bush.

Next Steps

CAI staff is working with members of the College of Community Association Lawyers to draft a synopsis of HR 42 and recommendations for community associations in complying with the new law.  This information will be posted on CAI's website in the near future.

Press Release

CAI issued a press release that includes quotes from Congressman Rep. Roscoe Bartlett of Maryland, the sponsor of the bill, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and CAI Chief Executive Officer Tom Skiba.