The Houston Chronicle reports that the Houston Housing Authority has instituted a no-smoking policy with the hope of lessening the consequences of direct and secondhand exposure to tobacco in public housing.
Residents of Houston public housing are now forbidden to smoke inside common areas, their units, offices or within 25 feet of entrances.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has been encouraging public housing agencies to add no-smoking policies to their buildings for the last several years.
All residents have been asked to sign lease amendments which incorporate the new smoke-free policy. The no-smoking policy in Houston public housing will be enforced beginning April 1.
Source: KHOU.com, “Residents in Houston Public Housing No Longer Allowed to Smoke Indoors,” January 27, 2014