HOAs in most states cannot issue liens for unpaid fines, only for unpaid dues or assessments.
Some form of enforcement must be available to the HOA. Otherwise I'd sow wheat in my yard and raise a gaggle of chickens starting tomorrow.
My neighbors (Maryland) have had a broken down car in front of their house for 2 years now. I see HOA violation notices on it every once in a while threatening to get it towed if they don't fix it, but nothing ever comes of it.
And every year we see news stories of HOAs inducing foreclosures etc on owners for $10 late dues, flying national flag, or painting a porch the wrong shade of white.
Gov't/HOA involvement & enforcement varies wildly. This subthread regards those thinking "1984" was a good idea.
I could certainly see an HOA installing (increasingly cheap!) license plate & face recognition to monitor local activity "for security reasons"; seems innocuous enough if actually used sparingly to help police solve real crimes, but could quickly become obnoxious/oppressive when meddling board members with hyperactive imaginations start "looking for trouble before it starts".
Yes, "HOA going 1984" is not full blown 1984, but it can terrorize & harm locals until they manage to move (i.e.: persuade someone else to move into a place locals are fleeing for reasons), and if less problematic still proceeds to normalize progression of 1984-ish governance.