Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Backyard Chickens Hoas topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate Agriculture committee sends 'Free the Chicken' bill to the floor after testimony from homeowners
Summary
Sen. Tammy Nichols presented Senate Bill 1026 to prohibit homeowners associations from outright banning backyard chickens while allowing reasonable coop and nuisance regulations; the committee voted to send the bill to the floor with a due‑pass recommendation. Testimony came from homeowners who said HOA rules had prevented them from keeping hens.
Sen. Tammy Nichols, R–District 10, introduced Senate Bill 1026, which she described informally as the “Free the Chicken Bill.” Nichols told the Senate Agriculture Committee the bill is intended to protect homeowners’ property rights by preventing homeowners associations (HOAs) from outright banning the keeping of a limited number of backyard hens, while still allowing HOAs to adopt reasonable rules concerning coop placement, waste management and prohibitions on roosters.
“Senate bill 10 26 ensures that homeowners and HOAs have the same rights as those not governed by HOAs to own a limited number of backyard chickens,” Nichols said. The bill text presented in committee would allow up to four chickens per 0.2 acre, permit HOAs to set reasonable regulations (including prohibiting roosters), and would not affect city or county ordinances or agricultural zones.
Two homeowners testified in support. Scott Rarick of Rupert said his subdivision’s covenants prohibit poultry outright and that, for practical reasons—including egg costs and pest control—HOAs should not be allowed to ban hens. “I don't think HOAs should be allowed to just say you cannot have chickens,” Rarick told the committee. Brian Ullman, a homeowner in Eagle, described the procedural barriers his HOA imposes to amend covenants, saying it can be effectively impossible to secure the signatures and quorums needed to change restrictive CC&Rs. Ullman asked the committee to send the bill to the floor with a due pass recommendation.
Sen. Taylor spoke against the measure on grounds that HOAs reflect property buyers’ expectations and said she considered the bill an overreach because of a broader definition included in the draft, though Nichols clarified the current proposal applies to chickens and the broader “small‑scale livestock” definition was provided for clarity and not as part of this bill.
Sen. Kohl moved to send SB 1026 to the floor with a due‑pass recommendation; Sen. Lakey seconded. The motion passed on a voice vote. Sen. Taylor stated her opposition and requested her nay be recorded.
The committee did not adopt amendments at this hearing. If introduced to the full Senate, the bill would still allow local governments to regulate poultry under their ordinances and would not apply to agricultural zones.
