In two amendments to the House Committee on Appropriations FY23 HUD funding bill, Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) continued her push to allow marijuana and medical marijuana use in federally-assisted housing in states where such use is legal. The amendments would prohibit the use of HUD funding to enforce the prohibition on marijuana and medical marijuana in federally assisted housing in jurisdictions where recreational marijuana is legal.

The House is preparing to vote on a six-bill FY23 appropriations package the week of July 18 and Representatives have begun to submit amendments that may be considered during votes on the bill, which includes the FY23 HUD appropriations bill that came out of the House Committee on Appropriations on June 30.

“The Department of Housing and Urban Development should not be allowed to remove people from their homes or otherwise punish them if they follow the marijuana laws of their jurisdictions,” Representative Norton said in a June 13 statement. “More and more states are moving toward legalization of marijuana, especially of medical marijuana. It is time for HUD to allow marijuana in federally assisted housing in jurisdictions where it is legal, particularly where medical marijuana is legal. Nobody should be evicted for following the law and the advice of their doctors.”

In 2021, Representative Norton asked HUD Secretary Fudge to use executive discretion to not enforce the prohibition on marijuana in federally assisted housing in jurisdictions where marijuana is legal. In its 2021 response to Representative Norton, HUD said it was bound to follow the Controlled Substances Act which categorizes marijuana as a “category 1” controlled substance and therefore the manufacture, distribution, and possession of marijuana is a federal offense. In HUD’s resonse, it reiterated much of HUD’s 2014 Memorandum to public housing agencies and HUD-assisted owners ont he subject of marijuana use in HUD housing. 

The 2014 Memorandum states that HUD-assisted owners are required by the 1998 Quality Housing & Work Responsibility Act to deny admission to any household with a member who is determined to be, at the time of application, illegally using a controlled substance as that term is defined by the Controlled Substances Act. The Memorandum also makes clear that law “allows” the owner to terminate occupancy, but it is not a requirement. The determination of when to terminate occupancy based on the use of marijuana may be made on a case-by-case basis, according to the Memorandum.

Stakeholders are urged to reach out to their members of Congress to urge strong HUD funding levels for FY23. See LeadingAge’s action alert for FY23 HUD funding here.

Read LeadingAge’s summary of the bill as approved by the HUD Subcommittee and a summary of the Subcommittee’s consideration of the bill.

Read LeadingAge’s summary of the report accompanying the bill.

Here is a chart comparing HUD multifamily senior housing funding in FY21, FY22, and FY23.