Community Associations Institute’s federal government affairs efforts are member driven. The targeted program is dedicated to improving federal policy outcomes for the community association industry through federal legislative action committee leadership and lobby teams, engagement with CAI members, community association experts, and policymakers.

CAI maintains a robust advocacy network at the federal level and keeps members informed of relevant legislation and rulemaking. Here are CAI’s federal priorities for 2025:

1. Tax Reform for Community Associations
CAI supports tax reforms to alleviate financial burdens on community associations and homeowners. Priorities include:

    • Homeowner Assessment Tax Deduction: Support legislation to allow homeowners to deduct community association assessments from federal income taxes, recognizing these payments as essential for property maintenance and neighborhood improvement. (Reference – 2016 H.R. 4696; HOME Act)

2. Corporate Transparency Act Exemption for Community Associations
CAI opposes the inclusion of community associations under the act’s reporting requirements. Priorities include:

3. FEMA Disaster Relief for Community Associations: ﷟CAI will pursue legislative changes to ensure community associations are eligible for FEMA disaster relief programs. This includes access to funding for debris removal and infrastructure repair after natural disasters, providing equitable support for all residents. (Reference H.R. 3777 and H.R. 6108) equitable support for all residents. (Reference H.R. 3777 and H.R. 6108)

4. Housing Finance and Lending Requirements
Advocacy efforts will focus on ensuring federal housing finance policies do not unduly burden community associations or homeowners. This includes:

    • Working with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to adjust lender requirements, ensuring condominium associations meet reasonable criteria for loan eligibility.
    • Advocating for reforms to FHA lender requirements to expand access to affordable mortgage financing for homes within community associations.

5. Condominium Safety and Building Resilience

Expand the scope of available loans for condominium structural repairs through opening  key federal programs. Allow FHA-insured condominium association loans to be used for the rehabilitation, alteration, repair, improvement, or replacement of a condominium project’s common systems, infrastructure, and facilities. Promote federal resources and funding to enhance condominium safety and resilience, prioritizing:

    • Grants and Low-Interest Loans: Support for individual homeowners and associations to address building inspections, structural repairs, and compliance with safety standards. (Reference. 2022 – 2024 – H.R. 4465 and H.R. 7532)
    • Resilience and Sustainability Programs: Federal funding for associations to adopt resilience measures such as energy efficiency upgrades, disaster-proofing, and infrastructure modernization.

6. Preserving Self-Governance of Community Associations
CAI is committed to protecting the self-governance rights of community associations and ensuring state authority over land use and housing matters. Priorities include:

    • Safeguarding Self-Governance: Oppose federal overreach that undermines the ability of community associations to govern themselves effectively and in alignment with their governing documents.
    • Protecting State Authority: Advocate for preserving state jurisdiction over land use and community association housing policies, emphasizing local solutions for local issues.

7. Affordable Housing and Opportunity Zone Development
CAI will advocate for policies encouraging affordable housing development within community associations focusing on:

    • Expanding the use of Opportunity Zones to incentivize investment in housing projects that integrate affordable options.
    • Supporting federal programs that provide incentives for mixed-income developments and ensure affordability for first-time homebuyers and low-income families.

8. Advocacy and Industry Awareness
A focus on targeted member engagement in advocacy efforts and raising awareness with key stakeholders, regulatory officials and members of Congress to drive legislative and regulatory progress. Key initiatives include:

    • Advocate Engagement: Mobilize CAI advocates to educate and engage their representatives on key issues affecting community associations.
    • State Legislative Action Committees: Strengthen partnerships with state legislative action committees to coordinate state and federal advocacy efforts.
    • Advocacy Summit 2025: Host the Advocacy Summit in the fall of 2025, bringing together stakeholders to strategize, network, and advance CAI’s federal priorities.

These priorities reflect CAI’s ongoing commitment to securing legislative and regulatory solutions that support community associations, homeowners, and industry professionals while ensuring financial stability, safety, and equity in communities nationwide. Resources and additional information can be found here.

Subscribe To Our Blog

Receive notification of new posts by email

We sent you an email to confirm your subscription.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This