Minnesota

Minnesota HOA bill to cap homeowner fines heads to Walz’s desk

Published

3 weeks ago

May 8, 2026

Press Room

Minnesota HOA bill to cap homeowner fines heads to Walz’s desk

Madison McVan
| Minnesota Reformer

A bipartisan bill to reform homeowners’ associations has passed the Minnesota Senate and now awaits the governor’s signature.
The legislation caps most HOA fines at $100 and requires board members to disclose potential financial conflicts of interest.
The bill also limits an HOA’s ability to charge residents legal fees for questioning fines or charges.

A bipartisan bill limiting homeowners’ association fees, implementing new transparency and conflict-of-interest rules and establishing a path to dissolve some HOAs passed the Minnesota Senate Wednesday. The bill (SF1750) now heads to Gov. Tim Walz’s desk for final approval.

Homeowners in Minnesota have faced massive charges from their HOAs for questionable construction projects, like new roofs and siding. A 2025 Reformer investigation found that some HOA management companies hired their own subsidiaries to complete expensive construction projects. In at least one case, a homeowner wound up in foreclosure due to hefty assessments.

The bill passed by the Senate — and previously, by the House — would cap HOA fines at $100, with exceptions for repeat violations, health and safety risks, property damage or illegal rentals. It would require board members and property managers to disclose their financial relationships and recuse themselves from decisions from which they could financially benefit.

If signed into law by Walz, it would also require HOAs to make budgets available prior to meetings and to provide copies of contracts to residents upon request.

Multiple homeowners interviewed by the Reformer said that their questions for their HOA were referred to the board’s attorney — and then the resident was charged legal fees for the lawyers’ time.

The bill would bar HOAs from charging residents legal fees for questioning fines or charges unless a formal hearing is held and the fine or assessment is upheld.

The legislation is the product of years of collaboration and negotiations among homeowners, HOA board members, lawmakers and property management companies. In 2024, the Legislature created a working group tasked with proposing reforms to the state’s laws governing HOAs and similar organizations. Lawmakers on the task force held several listening sessions to hear homeowners’ horror stories (and support for HOAs via some dedicated board members).

The recommendations from that group became the foundation of the bill passed Wednesday.

“The reforms in this bill will rein in abusive HOAs by empowering residents with more information, more rights and more protections,” said Sen. Eric Lucero, R-St. Michael, the top Republican on the Senate housing committee and a member of the HOA working group. “This bill is a true bipartisan compromise — in addition to adding consumer protections, nearly every concern raised in good faith was addressed.”

Minnesota Reformer is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

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Minnesota

Wildcat Sanctuary: Rio the Ocelot Turns 27

Published

1 hour ago

May 28, 2026

Press Room

Wildcat Sanctuary: Rio the Ocelot Turns 27

A beloved ocelot named Rio is celebrating an incredible milestone at the Wildcat Sanctuary in Sandstone, Minnesota — her 27th birthday! This stunning medium-sized wildcat is known for her gorgeous spotted coat and distinctive ring-patterned tail. Tammy Thies, founder and executive director of the Wildcat Sanctuary, joined Minnesota Live to share more about Rio’s remarkable life. Learn more here.

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Minnesota

Latest Minnesota summer outlook inconclusive on heat, more certain of dry streak

Published

13 hours ago

May 27, 2026

Press Room

Latest Minnesota summer outlook inconclusive on heat, more certain of dry streak

Meteorological summer kicks off June 1 and lasts through August. So, is the heat here to stay in Minnesota?

With temperatures near 90 lately, summer is on everyone’s mind. The outlook from the Climate Prediction Center says it’s a toss-up when it comes to temperatures over the three-month season.

“We’re going into an El Niño, and probably a very strong one, or a super El Niño, as they say,” said Pete Boulay, a climatologist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “And looking at past history, might be a cooler-than-normal summer. But we’ll have to wait and see what happens. If you stay dry, it’s going to be hard to stay cool.”

And no doubt, Minnesota has been dry already with drought conditions persisting across northern and southwestern parts of the state.

“Most places in the state are about 1-3 inches short of normal for May, and right about this time of year, we should get about an inch of rain a week,” Boulay said. “Every time we don’t get that rain, every week that goes by, the drought will come back.”

The summer outlook says it is more likely that conditions remain drier than average through August. Though we’re past the majority of Minnesota’s wildfire season, Boulay said if conditions are right, that could create elevated fire threats, unless you’re lucky enough to see some rain.

“We’re in that kind of lazy pattern right now. There’s a high pressure off to our east, and we have kind of the return flow coming out of the south, so warm, and you know, you still might have one of those thunderstorms pop up very isolated, but maybe you’ll get lucky and get one, but most people won’t,” he said.

Boulay said he doesn’t see any change in sight in the short-term with more heat on the way to kick off June.

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