Just a few days ago, we reported on a planned community in Florida that’s banned the lawful carrying of firearms in common areas like parks, trails, and even the local dog park.
Tradition Community Association is the not-for-profit corporation that owns and maintains the common areas in the sprawling planned community of Tradition, which is home to about 10,000 people in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
When I covered Tradition’s gun ban, I noted that as a private entity it’s likely that the TCA would be exempt from Florida’s preemption law, which prohibits political subdivisions from establishing their own gun control laws. And while that’s true, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier says the policy violates another state law that’s designed to protect the right to keep and bear arms.
Tradition Community Association, Inc. is on notice:
Enforcement of its discriminatory policy against anyone for exercising the constitutional right to keep and bear arms will be met with legal action by my office. pic.twitter.com/1j4hjeoeUf
— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) May 21, 2026
Uthmeier points to Section 790.251(4)(e) of the Florida statutes, which says in part, that “No public or private employer may terminate the employment of or otherwise discriminate against an employee, or expel a customer or invitee for exercising his or her constitutional right to keep and bear arms.”
The Attorney General points out that the Tradition Community Association is a private employer, so it’s employees would be covered under the statute. And he says anyone visiting those common areas is an “invitee” who “cannot be expelled for exercising their right to keep and bear arms.”
I’m thrilled to see the Attorney General aggressively defending the Second Amendment rights of Tradition residents and visitors, but I do have some questions about his threat to take legal action if the HOA continues to enforce its prohibition.
First, the section of Florida statute the Uthmeier cites is part of a state law called “Preservation and Protection of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in Motor Vehicles Act of 2008,” though the portion of the statute that Uthmeier points to does not explicitly reference keeping a gun in a vehicle:
No public or private employer may terminate the employment of or otherwise discriminate against an employee, or expel a customer or invitee for exercising his or her constitutional right to keep and bear arms or for exercising the right of self-defense as long as a firearm is never exhibited on company property for any reason other than lawful defensive purposes.
Is that language enough to apply to TCA, given that the rest of the statue talks about being able to keep firearms in vehicles in places where guns are otherwise banned on private property?
The portion of the statute referenced by Uthmeier also says that employees can’t be fired or discriminated against, and “invitees” can’t be expelled for exercising their constitutional rights. Can they be fined, though? When I lived in a neighborhood governed by a homeowners association (an experience I hope I never have to repeat), I was threatened with fines for not raking up my leaves fast enough and a child’s playset in my backyard that was supposedly visible from the street, but the HOA never suggested they’d go after my home, even if that might have been the punishment of last resort. Uthmeier says he’ll take legal action if the Tradition Community Association attempts to enforce its policy in any way, but it seems to me that the statute gives the HOA some leeway, even under the broadest interpretation possible.
The Port St. Lucie police chief has already said that the HOA policy doesn’t have the force of law, and Tradition residents don’t have to worry about being arrested if they violate the community association’s ban on firearms in common areas. Maybe Uthmeier’s threat, combined with the chief’s previous comments, will be enough to get Tradition Community Association to rescind its carry ban, but we’ve all seen horror stories of litigious HOAs, and it’s entirely possible that TCA will be willing to meet the Attorney General in court in an attempt to keep its ban in place.
Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.
Help us continue to report on and expose the Democrats’ gun control policies and schemes. Join Bearing Arms VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Read the full article here
