Cigarette butt litter

You do NOT increase dues for one person or for a violation. Dues are raised to meet the HOA's expenses. This is a PUNITIVE issue that requires fines, restrictions, or monetary responsibility. Dues are NOT punitive expenses.

Other than adding additional maintenance cost for clean up, or invoking a municipal littering law, this sounds like a dead end.

You'd think it would dawn on folks that litter of any kind isn't pretty, but as others have, said increasing dues to the smokers only smacks of discrimination.

You didn't say how extensive the problem is, but I suppose you could have your property manager send out a crew once or twice a week to pick up litter - and add that cost to the budget, which would likely increase dues for everyone. If they squawk, remind everyone the common areas are not gigantic ash trays, kitty litter boxes or receptacles for dog poo or other trash.

Even then, you can't always fix stupid - if you catch someone littering and you have a rule to that effect, work with your association attorney on setting up a fining schedule (appliable to EVERYONE) with appeal rights, then distribute it, with an effective date (e.g. 30 days after the notice).

If homeowners want a clean, safe, attractive community, the choice is either (1) clean up after yourselves and make sure your visitors and tenants do the same or (2) ante up if they think the HOA should behave like their mother. Even then, most of us remember our mothers eventually told us to pick up our crap when we got old enough....

Not only that, tossing a lit cigarette in the wrong spot can cause a fire - remind homeowners of that as well.

Don't know if you remember, but I recall years ago when people started making various public places non-smoking, there was talk about "smoker's rights" and discrimination against smokers. Some folks (especially the cigarette manufacturers) tried to equate that to discrimination based on age, gender, race and so on. It didn't work - and that was appropriate.

That said, you need to calm the hell down. If this board increases dues on the smoking homeowners only because they smoke, that would be unfair. That's what I meant and you know it. If you'd rather substitute discrimination with unfair, go ahead - you won't hurt my feelings. Have a blessed day (or are you going to whine about that being a religious expression too?)

I can easily understand the use of the word “discrimination” across a broad range of topics - and, use the context to determine what is being said.

Maryland seems to be on the forward thinking side when it comes to banning cigarette smoking. From the Maryland attorney general as quoted (circa 2016?) at https://www.mdsmokefreeapartments.org/condominium-owners/:
The Maryland Attorney General’s Office has concluded that a condominium board may regulate smoking in individual units as well as common areas, so long as the bylaws do not forbid such rules. “It is my view that a rule barring smoking in individual units would be reasonable, at least in cases where the smoke seeps out to the common areas or to other units. Thus, it meets the test set both in § 11-109(d)(2) and the case law. Moreover, it seems clear that such a rule would bear a relationship to the health of the residents of the condominium, both in the avoidance of secondhand smoke and by reducing the risk of fire. As a result, it is my view that current law permits condominium boards to adopt rules prohibiting smoking in condominium units, unless such a rule would be inconsistent with the bylaws for that condominium.”

It seems like there is more talk today than ever about how banning smoking in condo units, via an amendment to the Declaration, is legal.

Our condo HOA went from 2010, from smoking in outdoor common areas only, to No smoking in this areas by 2012, to no smoking on our private balconies, patios, etc., (justified by our nuisance clause which includes noxious odors) in 2017 . Our upcoming CC&R revision will include those and no smoking inside our condo units. There will be no problems here in CA as it's becoming commonplace to ban smoking in units.

SO ... Does the County own the roads??? If so why is the HOA getting involved???

Don’t get me wrong I TOTALLY disagree with anyone discarding cigarette butts anywhere but proper trash containers ... and I currently smoke. However, if being discarded on a Country Road why not take out your phone and record the transgression and then provide to your County officials to address the issue??? If multiple owners provide multiple videos the County should address the trashing of their owned property.

Sorry ... the HOA has ZERO responsibility for any property NOT owned by the HOA!!!

Diedre ... Agree!!! Trying to regulate property outside an HOA can get an HOA into a legal lawsuit. Yep ... while I would not discard butts onto a street, if my HOA thought for one minute they could regulate my actions on “PUBLIC PROPERTY” they would have another thing coming no matter the situation. Not a smart idea ...