Amateur Radio Parity Act: 2025 Successor Bill and HOA Rules

The Amateur Radio Parity Act never became law. Introduced in several consecutive sessions of Congress, it passed the House of Representatives but stalled in the Senate each time, leaving licensed amateur radio operators without federal protection against antenna bans imposed by homeowners associations and other private community groups. A successor bill, the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act, was introduced in the House in February 2025 and remains in committee.

What the Bill Would Have Done

The Parity Act was written to close a specific gap. Since 1985, the FCC has required state and local governments to accommodate amateur antennas in their zoning rules, but that protection has never reached private communities governed by deed restrictions, covenants, or HOA bylaws. The bill would have extended a similar accommodation requirement into those private settings.

Under the proposal, a community association would have had to reasonably accommodate the installation and use of an outdoor antenna on property controlled by a licensed operator. Associations could still write rules about safety and appearance, but any such rule could not go beyond the minimum restriction needed to serve those purposes. Operators would have had to obtain prior approval before erecting an antenna, giving both sides a structured process instead of an outright ban.

Why It Kept Failing

The bill was introduced repeatedly with strong bipartisan support in the House and no traction in the Senate. In the 114th Congress it moved as H.R. 1301 and cleared the House, but the Senate never voted on it.¹ It returned in the 116th Congress as H.R. 466 and met the same fate.² Opposition from community association lobbyists, who argued that federal law should not override privately negotiated contracts, is widely credited with blocking Senate action.

The 2025 Successor Bill

The legislative effort did not end with the Parity Act. In February 2025, Representatives introduced H.R. 1094, the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act, which was referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.³ The new name emphasizes amateur radio’s role in disaster response, and the text takes a somewhat different approach than its predecessor.

H.R. 1094 would limit private land use restrictions that prohibit, restrict, or impair the installation, maintenance, or operation of an amateur antenna on property controlled by a licensed operator. A private restriction would violate the law if it unreasonably delays or prevents installation, increases the cost or difficulty of installation, or degrades the operator’s ability to transmit or receive signals.³

Associations could still require antennas to be structurally safe and installed according to manufacturer specifications, local zoning rules, and building codes. The bill would also limit how associations use prior-approval requirements and would exempt certain categories of antennas from prior approval entirely. One significant addition: the bill includes a private right of action, so an operator whose rights are violated could sue directly rather than relying only on an FCC complaint.³ As of mid-2025, the bill remains in committee.

What Federal Law Actually Protects Right Now

Without new legislation, the main federal protection is the FCC’s 1985 policy known as PRB-1, later codified at 47 CFR 97.15. PRB-1 requires state and local governments to reasonably accommodate amateur communications and to use the minimum regulation needed to serve a legitimate purpose such as safety or aesthetics.⁴ A city cannot flatly ban amateur antennas, and an operator denied a permit by a zoning board can challenge the decision on those grounds.

The critical limit is that PRB-1 has never applied to private agreements. The FCC explicitly declined to extend the preemption to covenants, conditions, and restrictions in deeds or condominium bylaws, treating those as contracts between private parties rather than government regulation.⁵ That is exactly the gap the Parity Act tried to close.

Another common source of confusion is the FCC’s Over-the-Air Reception Devices rule. OTARD does protect certain antennas from HOA restrictions, but amateur radio antennas are explicitly excluded. FCC guidance states that antennas used for amateur radio, CB radio, and AM/FM or digital audio radio are not covered.⁶ OTARD was written around consumer reception equipment like satellite dishes and broadcast television antennas, not two-way radio.

What Operators in HOA Communities Can Do

Because the Parity Act failed to pass and neither PRB-1 nor OTARD reaches private contracts, HOAs and condominium associations remain free to restrict or prohibit amateur antennas through their governing documents. Courts generally treat these covenants as private contracts the homeowner accepted at purchase, so an operator who signed onto deed restrictions banning exterior antennas has limited leverage under current federal law.

Some states have filled part of the gap. A handful of state statutes give operators limited rights, sometimes requiring associations to allow antennas under specified conditions or to go through mediation before enforcing a ban. The specifics vary widely, so an operator in a deed-restricted community should check both the governing documents and any applicable state statute. A restriction enforceable in one state may be limited or unenforceable in another.

Where no state backstop applies, the practical path is negotiation with the architectural review committee. Some operators have succeeded by proposing smaller or less visible antenna designs, agreeing to specific placement, or framing the request around emergency communications. The FCC has recognized that amateur radio provides essential communications during disasters when normal systems fail, and that framing sometimes shifts a board’s position.⁷

1
Congress.gov. H.R. 1301 – 114th Congress (2015-2016) – Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015
2
Congress.gov. H.R. 466 – 116th Congress (2019-2020) – Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2019
3
Congress.gov. H.R. 1094 – 119th Congress (2025-2026) – Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act
4
Federal Communications Commission. PRB-1 (1985)47 CFR 97.15 – Station Antenna Structures
5
Federal Communications Commission. PRB-1 (1999) – Modification and Clarification of Policies and Procedures Governing Siting and Maintenance of Amateur Radio Antennas and Support Structures
6
Federal Communications Commission. Installing Consumer-Owned Antennas and Satellite Dishes
7
Federal Communications Commission. Topic 13 – Amateur Radio Service Support to Public Safety