Philadelphia Housing Authority bans smoking in all housing units (Philadelphia Inquirer, Madeline R. Conway)
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The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s (PHA) board of commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to ban smoking in all PHA units. Housing officials said Philadelphia, with 80,000 low-income tenants, is the largest city in the country to enact such a prohibition. The new rules are to take effect Aug. 5.
Under the policy, smoking will be prohibited inside homes and on public-housing property except in designated outdoor areas. Specifically:
- Current or future tenants caught smoking in existing housing will be asked to attend counseling sessions, the regulations state, but will not face eviction.
- Those smoking in buildings that open after the ban goes into effect risk losing their leases if they violate the rules a fourth time.
According to a poll released by the PHA, 35 percent of respondents smoked or lived with a smoker, and 55 percent supported living in smoke-free housing. Philadelphia’s move follows a national trend. Public-housing agencies in other major metropolitan areas, including Houston, Boston, and Detroit, have also gone smoke-free in recent years. Maine banned smoking in public housing in 2012.
Read the full Philadelphia Inquirer story.