2015 Legislation – AB 1448 – HOAs Banned from Restricting Clotheslines

Updated on 7/6/15: AB 1448 requires HOAs to permit the use of clotheslines in backyards, and allows the association to place reasonable restrictions on the installation and use of both clotheslines and drying racks.

Updated on 7/6/15

What AB 1448 Says

Last amended on June 16th, this bill would require HOAs to permit the use of clotheslines under specific circumstances. This bill originally identified clotheslines as a “solar energy system” and prohibited associations from restricting or prohibiting the installation and use of clotheslines altogether. The author worked with ECHO to address safety and oversight concerns, and amended the bill to allow associations to place reasonable restrictions on the use of clotheslines and drying racks. ECHO has dropped its opposition to the bill.

Full Summary of AB 1448

From the Legislative Counsel’s Digest:

Under existing law, any provision of a governing document, as defined, that effectively prohibits or unreasonably restricts the use of a homeowner’s backyard for personal agriculture, as defined, is void and unenforceable, unless it imposes a reasonable restriction, as defined, on the use of a homeowner’s backyard.

This bill would make any provision of a governing document, as defined, void and unenforceable if it effectively prohibits or unreasonably restricts the use of a clothesline or a drying rack, as defined, in an owner’s backyard, except that reasonable restrictions, as defined, would be enforceable. The bill would specify that these provisions would only apply to backyards that are designated for the exclusive use of the owner.