In 2020 special interests had Florida State Legislation passed that allow the sale and use of Fireworks on the 4th of July and New Years eve and day. While some people take this as permission to buy and set off whatever they may please while their neighbors and pets have an evening of fear and anxiety that their home may be set afire, we must clarify that there are rules that apply here.
The state law is problematic as comprehensive guidelines for use that were developed in 2007, were never enacted by the State Legislature. Although not enacted, we would recommend the Task Force Report as a guideline for avoiding civil and criminal fines and penalties for the use of fireworks in Florida.
Here is the Report to the Legislature
https://consensus.fsu.edu/Fireworks-Task-Force/pdfs/Fireworks_Final.pdf
After being bombed with aerial fireworks by the neighbors across the street on July 4, 2024, I gave them notice but did not see that they realized they had done anything wrong, claiming that “everybody else was doing it.” The 2024 fireworks were filled with debris and when it hit my house it caused no fire. So this year when I saw them out there again setting up to set off explosive aerial fireworks, I got out there and yelled at them, which did very little to stop their madness, and then called the police. There were three of them on my street that were out there blasting away, one from the condos to the south. The situation seemed to calm down when the police arrived and I did not press for arrests. While some of the other blasters got the message, the neighbor across the street continued on after the police left, now bombing my other neighbors more so than me. I looked out the window once, seeing explosive sparks and smoke waft over the property next door towards the house and must say such impaired judgement must be checked.
So let us consider what the authorities say.
Boynton Beach Ordinances
Should your fireworks ignite a fire, regardless of intent, it is felony arson, per the Boynton Beach Fire Marshall’s Office.
The City Ordinances requires a permit for fireworks per Boynton Beach Code of Ordinances, Part II, Chapter 9 Fire Protection and Prevention and Chapter 15 Offenses – Miscellaneous.
Unpermitted fireworks are prohibited at parks and beaches per Boynton Beach Code of Ordinances, Part II, Chapter 16 Parks and Recreation
Enforcement gets tricky between the Fire Marshall, the Police and the HOA and videos are hard to get for proof. One would need a spotlight as well as a camera to get video of who is doing any damage. That is not a Happy Holiday.
Florida State Law
You can find the State Law, CHAPTER 791, SALE OF FIREWORKS below. 791.08 (at end) provides the exemption for holiday use and the note above it describes the task force comprehensive guidelines the State Legislature failed to enact.
The Florida State Attorney General posts this Opinion about the Task Force’s comprehensive guidelines linked at the top of this post.
https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/fireworks-regulation
Here is the History of the 2008 SB2270 that was not enacted
https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2008/2270/?Tab=BillText
HOA Covenants
Because the Comprehensive Guidelines were not enacted, the prohibition on creating new rules expressly prohibiting fireworks was never ended. However, there are several covenants that are violated by the use I have observed.
Fireworks may be prohibited as a Nuisance under Rule 12 of the list of rules for the HOA
12. No owners and no occupants shall commit or permit any nuisance or illegal activity in or about the property.
and as an HOA Covenant under 9.1.6 Nuisances and there is 9.1.5 Insurance also for consideration.
The Board may well have the opinion that the use of explosive aerial fireworks within the HOA as a Nuisance based on the State Fireworks Task Force Report, although this has not yet been tested in court. It is suggested to the Board that they also get a statement from our insurance provider about the coverage of fireworks in the common area and request an estimate for the cost of adding it to coverage if it is not included.
Homeowners should consider their own coverage before using fireworks. The Board may ask if any users of fireworks have insurance coverage for it should there be perceived violations of the Covenants. There could also be some questions asked about the instructions on the package of the fire works in use.
Administrative Implementation
Updated 11/20/2025
While the Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws and Covenants have well defined amendment procedures as governing documents, the HOA Rules and Regulations, titled the “Summary of the Rules & Regulations” is noted as an incomplete listing and has been changed throughout the years without a clear amendment process. These are not on file with the County and are not actually enforceable in themselves, but only as they are based on the Covenants and other documents that are on file.
The Summary of the Rules & Regulations (SRR) could be classified as a Published Document and have a lesser amendment process, by including the Governing Document (or other) citation for each of the rules and regulations. The SRR should have an amendment process defined and approved by the Board. This would include items that the Board determines are nuisances, under that Covenant. That way there would not really be any new rule making, but a summary of clarifications.
A new item on the list would be for prohibiting explosive fireworks within the HOA and limiting use of others fireworks based on the the Task Force Recommendations and directions for use they are labeled for. The citation would be the Covenants for Nuisances and Insurance.
As the fireworks state statue prohibits new rule making the language would need to be something like, “Explosive Aerial Fireworks are considered a Nuisance under Covenant 9.1.6 (Nuisance) and are also prohibited in the HOA under Covenant 9.1.5 (Insurance).” Optionally, other fireworks could be covered with a second sentence such as, “All fireworks are prohibited from use in the Common Areas of the HOA under Covenant 9.1.5 (Insurance) and all other use shall be in accordance with labeling and should conform to the Florida Consumer Fire Works Task Force Final Report “
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