Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier formally put the Tradition Community Association in Port St. Lucie on notice May 21, demanding the homeowners' association certify by June 1 that it will stop enforcing a rule prohibiting residents, guests, and contractors from carrying firearms — openly or concealed — in any of the development's shared common areas. Bearing Arms reported the letter, which warns that noncompliance will be met with legal action by the attorney general's office.

The Tradition Community Association, a large master-planned community in western St. Lucie County, adopted the firearms prohibition in December 2025, applying it to all shared spaces including Town Hall, Tradition Square, parks, trails, the dog park, the splash pad, and stormwater corridors throughout the development. The only exceptions carved out are vehicles and law enforcement activity. Residents who raised objections at HOA board meetings were told the rule was binding, and the Port St. Lucie Police Department had already confirmed it does not enforce private HOA policies as criminal violations.

Uthmeier's challenge rests on Florida Statute 790.251, which prohibits private entities from taking discriminatory action against employees or invitees who lawfully exercise the right to keep and bear arms. His office applied the statute broadly to the HOA's common area ban, treating the association as a covered private entity whose firearms prohibition constitutes illegal discrimination against lawful gun carriers. In his letter to association president K. Karl Albertson Jr., Uthmeier wrote: "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."

The statutory basis Uthmeier chose is notable. Florida Statute 790.33 — the state's comprehensive firearms preemption law — blocks local government entities from enacting restrictions beyond state law, but has historically applied to governmental bodies rather than private associations. By invoking 790.251 instead, Uthmeier's office is testing whether existing employment discrimination protections for gun owners can reach HOA common areas without waiting for new legislation. The Port St. Lucie Police Department's position — that HOA rules carry no criminal weight it can enforce — had already established that the association's ban was unenforceable as a practical matter, but the attorney general's letter elevated it from a civic dispute to a formal state enforcement priority.

As of publication, the Tradition Community Association had not publicly responded to the attorney general's letter or announced any change to the policy. The June 1 deadline gives the association roughly one week to act. Whether Uthmeier proceeds with legal action and what enforcement mechanism his office deploys under existing statutes will set a precedent for how Florida handles similar firearms restrictions imposed by private community associations going forward.