Industry leaders agree that no-smoking policies provide a cost-effective, safe and healthy environment for staff and residents.
No-smoking policies help affordable housing stay affordable.
“HACSA [Housing Authority of Lane County] will also find itself spending less to repaint,
recarpet and clean its public housing units, and the units themselves will be generally
more appealing. Soon after the no-smoking policy goes into effect in public housing,
the only question will be why it took so long.” — Eugene’s Register-Guard Editorial 7/18/10
No-smoking policies ensure that safe and healthy housing
is not a luxury.
Decent housing is an essential component of a person’s physical safety & well-being.
“When I realized that secondhand smoke was a Class A carcinogen, in the same
category with asbestos, I knew we had to adopt a no-smoking policy for all of our
properties to protect our employees and residents.” — Dianne Quast, Director of Real Estate
Operations, Housing Authority of Portland
Most renters want smokefree housing.
A survey found that Oregon renters, regardless of smoking status, prefer to live
in smokefree housing and that 40% would even pay extra rent! Most don’t smoke
(only 27% smoke daily and 6% some days) and over half of those who do already
go outside. What’s more, results were similar across all income groups.*
No-smoking policies are an easy and affordable way to improve indoor air
quality for all residents.
“At present the only means of effectively eliminating the health risks associated with
indoor exposure is to ban smoking activity.” — American Society of Heating, Refrigerating
and Air-Conditioning Engineers
“Adopting the policy was easier than we thought. Some people threatened to move out
but none did.” — Margaret Mahoney, REACH Community Development Corporation
Most smokers want to quit. No-smoking policies move them in that direction.
A survey of Guardian Management’s low-income residents showed that, after their
no-smoking policy went into effect, 43% were smoking less. Almost 50% of smokers
said they tried to quit and 2/3 of those cited the no-smoking policy as the main reason.**
“In one senior and disabled building, a few tenants came up and thanked me for
making it smokefree because they wanted to quit smoking. Then they quit – out of
twelve smokers in the building, only three are still smoking.” — Kathy Lucas, Executive Director, Clatsop County Housing Authority
Industry leaders agree that no-smoking policies provide a
cost-effective, safe and healthy environment for staff and residents.
Benefits of No-Smoking Policies
HUD encourages public
housing authorities and
multifamily housing rental
assistance programs to
implement no-smoking
policies in some or all of the
units they own or manage.
— HUD Notice PIH-2009-21(HA)
— HUD Notice H-2010-21
“The scientific evidence
is now indisputable:
secondhand smoke is
not a mere annoyance.
It is a serious health hazard
that can lead to disease and
premature death in children
and nonsmoking adults.”
— US Surgeon General, 2006
Landlords who have adopted no-smoking rules say they would never go back!
THE
IN AFFORDABLE HOUSING
“ I am happy to support
Tobacco Freedom, an
initiative committed to
providing consumers of
mental health services
with tobacco free treatment,
residential facilities and
grounds. These changes
are a triple win: a win for
clients and consumers by
providing environments
that make it easier to quit,
a win for employees by
reducing their exposure to
secondhand smoke and
a win for our state by
improving the health of
our residents.”
— Richard Harris, Assistant Director
for the Addictions and Mental Health
Division, Oregon Health Authority
No-smoking policies are legal
Oregon law now requires landlords, as part of the rental agreement, to
disclose their smoking policy.
“Neither smokers nor the act of smoking is included as a protected class under
federal, state, or local Fair Housing laws.” — The Fair Housing Council of Oregon
No-smoking policies prevent fires
“This summer in Portland, we had 33 smoking-related fires resulting in $366,116
in losses. It’s time to put a stop to this. Asking smokers to smoke outside their
dwellings and to extinguish their cigarette butts safely in water or sand would
save thousands of dollars and even more importantly, save lives.” — Paul Corah,
Public Information Officer, Portland Fire and Rescue
L andlord T ools :
Visit www.smokefreehousinginfo.com for tools to implement your
no-smoking policy and for more information about the new Smoking
Policy Disclosure Law.
Public Health partners are eager to work with housing providers to
adopt no-smoking policies. Local tobacco prevention coordinators can
work hand-in-hand with you to conduct tenant surveys, assist with
informational resident sessions, prepare for board presentations, link
smokers who want to quit with resources, etc.
F ind yo u r co unt y co nt a c t a t :
www.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/tobacco/docs/contractorsgrantees.xls.
“We have been collaborating with our local health department’s Tobacco
Prevention and Education Program who have been a great resource. Our
community should utilize these folks more often.” — Andy Wilch, Administrator,
Salem Housing Authority
Q uitting R esour c es :
If a resident wants to learn about and get support to quit smoking, the
Oregon Tobacco Quit Line can help! Either you or the resident can call
the Oregon Tobacco Quit Line at 1-800-QUIT-NOW or 1-800-784-8669
(English) and 1-877-266-3863 (Spanish) for free resources including
counseling and, quite often, nicotine replacement therapy.
This work is funded by the Tobacco Prevention and Education Program,
Oregon Public Health Division
* Survey conducted 8/08 by Campbell DeLong Resources, Inc – full report at www.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/tobacco/docs/08/08rentsurvey.pdf.
** Pizacani BA et al. Smoke-free subsidized multiunit housing: Adherence, acceptance, economics
and health implications. Unpublished data.
HUD encourages public housing authorities and multifamily housing rental assistance programs to implement no-smoking policies in some or all of the units they own or manage.
— HUD Notice PIH-2009-21(HA)
— HUD Notice H-2010-21
“The scientific evidence is now indisputable: secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance. It is a serious health hazard that can lead to disease and premature death in children and nonsmoking adults.”
— US Surgeon General, 2006