​Community association leaders convened on Capitol Hill to advocate for disaster relief assistance and legislative priorities on behalf of homeowners living in condominiums, housing cooperatives, and HOAs.

In support of the 69 million residents living in condos, co-ops, and HOAs, Community Associations Institute (CAI) sponsored the 2017 Advocacy Summit in Washington, D.C., on Wed., Sept. 27. More than 50 community association leaders representing the nation's 342,000 community associations met with congressional representatives to address top concerns facing homeowners—federal disaster relief efforts, housing finance reform, amateur radio act, and FCC broadband internet service.

The one-day advocacy event brought CAI community association leaders from Texas and Florida, where millions of residents were devastated by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma to Capitol Hill to rally congressional support for the Disaster Assistance Equity Act of 2017 (H.R. 3238), which would give community associations access to federal disaster response funds and recovery programs.

Under the current laws, community associations affected by natural disasters do not qualify for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assistance, according to Community Associations Institute (CAI), the leading international authority in community association education, governance, and management.

The Houston area represents 3,500 to 4,000 community associations where dozens of neighborhoods suffered record-breaking rainfall, devastating floods, mandatory evacuations, and damaging high winds from Hurricane Harvey in August. And in Florida, community association homeowners are working to clear a massive amount of debris in streets and common areas after Hurricane Irma slammed many Florida community associations in the Naples, Marco Island, and Fort Myers areas. The state represents nearly 10 million residents in 48,000 community associations.

"Now more than ever, community associations and the residents who live in these homes need our support," says Dawn Bauman, CAE, CAI's senior vice president for government and public affairs. "Today, CAI's voice on Capitol Hill allowed us to give lawmakers a clear perspective of why FEMA's federal disaster relief aid is unjustly excluding 21 percent of the country's housing."

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About Community Associations Institute
Since 1973, Community Associations Institute (CAI) has been the leading provider of resources and information for homeowners, volunteer board leaders, professional managers, and business professionals in nearly 350,000 community associations, condominiums, and co-ops in the United States and millions of communities worldwide. With nearly 35,000 members, CAI works in partnership with 63 affiliated chapters within the U.S, Canada, United Arab Emirates, and South Africa, as well as with housing leaders in several other countries including Australia, Spain, Saudi Arabia, and the United Kingdom.  

A global nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization, CAI is the foremost authority in community association management, governance, education, and advocacy. Our mission is to inspire professionalism, effective leadership, and responsible citizenship—ideals reflected in community associations that are preferred places to call home. Visit us at www.caionline.org and follow us on Twitter and Facebook @CAISocial.