CAI-CLAC Celebrates a Record-Breaking 2021:


Setting the Bar Higher for 2022


Anne Rawlinson, Esq. Whitney | Petchul APC


What is CAI-CLAC?


If you’re reading this article, you’ve probably heard of CAI-CLAC. But exactly what is it? CLAC is the acronym for “California Legislative Action Committee,” the statewide committee of the Community Associations Institute (CAI). (I’ll just call it “CLAC” from now on.) CLAC is a leading California organization that educates California legislators about how their proposed laws could affect the 50,000-plus community associations in the state and tries to persuade them to strike a balance between State legislative goals and the ability of individual homeowners to govern themselves through their community associations.


How CLAC Works


CLAC does its work through its professional lobbyist, Louie Brown, and volunteers from CAI chapters who testify at hearings and meet with legislators to educate them about the impact of proposed laws. Although volunteers are important, Louie is an important key to the success of CLAC. The more time he spends advocating for community associations in Sacramento, the better the outcome.


The passage of SB 9 last year – which now allows multiple residences to be built on single family lots – is a good example. The legislature ignored CLAC’s requests to put language in the law stating that it did not override community association governing documents, but because CLAC was able to fund Louie’s time to lobby individual legislators on this issue, Senator Toni Atkins submitted a widely publicized letter to the Secretary of State stating that the law is not intended to supersede governing documents. (Whether this actually happens is yet to be seen.)


Legislative Support Committees: CLAC’s Local Support


As the example above shows, the amount of time Louie spends advocating for community associations depends on how much CLAC can afford to spend. CLAC is supported by individual CAI chapters through their Legislative Support Committees. These local committees are composed of volunteers – homeowners


10 March | April 2022


and others who work in the community association field. These committees publicize and raise money for CLAC’s work, particularly through the Buck-a-Door or More program. All of CLAC’s funding comes from these sources.


Buck-a-Door or More


The Buck-a-Door or More program is one of CLAC’s most important fundraising tools. The idea is simple: if community associations donate at least $1.00 for each door in the community, and professional organizations donate based on the number of people in their firm, CLAC would have an ample budget for its important work. As CAI-OC Vice President Bob Spillar, a homeowner member of the Chapter and a Delegate to CLAC, puts it, “It’s extremely important for homeowner leaders to be engaged in soliciting Buck-A-Door contributions, and for managers to explain the Buck-A-Door program to their boards. A donation of one dollar per door is a miniscule amount in the annual budget of most associations. It is a minor investment that results in major benefits.”


2021 – Orange County’s Busy and Successful Year


The Orange County Legislative Support Committee is one of the most active in the state, but it outdid itself last year. In response to a challenge from CLAC, the Orange County committee raised 116% of its fundraising goal for 2021 – and this doesn’t count funds it has already raised that will be applied to its 2022 goal. The July 2021 “Cook’s Corner Concert for CLAC” was particularly successful, breaking a single-event fundraising record. The volunteers on this committee are the key, according to Marybeth Green of Seabreeze Management, a committee member. “The Committee had great ideas for going beyond the committee’s fundraising work to find out what was happening in Sacramento and use this information for a legislative update event to build grassroots support for CLAC’s work.”


Knowing that the Chapter still had a gap to reach its annual CLAC contribution, the Legislative Support Committee created a Pledge


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