Staring with January of next year, the Orlando Housing Authority’s 1,450 public housing units in 11 housing communities will be smoke free.
That's according to an authority release, which states that the authority has been working for months on this policy implementation in partnership with the Tobacco Free Florida representatives from the Florida Department of Health in Orange County.
Officials say going smoke free furthers the Orlando Housing Authority’s mission to offer a safe housing option for residents of Orlando and Orange County, and encourages the community to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
In concert with the Orlando Housing Authority’s move to a smoke free environment, the Winter Park Housing Authority reported that it recently implemented its own smoke free policy.
Officials say this ensures that 100 percent of the public housing offerings in Orange County will be smoke free.
The adoption of the smoke free policy by the Orlando Housing Authority fulfills an Obama-era U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development federal rule that mandates all public housing agencies be smoke free by July 31, 2018.