Marijuana in Federally Assisted Housing Parity Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.3212 | Sponsor: Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes (D-DC)
Policy area: Housing and Community Development

Summary:
Marijuana in Federally Assisted Housing Parity Act of 2021
This bill specifies that (1) an individual may not be denied occupancy of federally assisted housing on the basis of using marijuana in compliance with state law, and (2) the Department of Housing and Urban Development may not prohibit or discourage the use of marijuana in federally assisted housing if such use is in compliance with state law.

To provide that an individual who uses marijuana in compliance with 
 State law may not be denied occupancy of federally assisted housing, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Marijuana in Federally Assisted 
Housing Parity Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO UNITED STATES HOUSING ACT OF 1937.

    The United States Housing Act of 1937 is amended as follows:
            (1) Drug-related criminal activity defined.--In section 
        3(b)(9) (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(9)), by inserting before the period 
        at the end the following: ``, except that such term shall not 
        include any such manufacture, sale, distribution, use, or 
        possession of marihuana (as such term is defined in such 
        section) that is in compliance with the law of the State in 
        which such manufacture, sale, distribution, use, or possession 
        takes place''.
            (2) Currently engaging in the illegal use of a controlled 
        substance and drug-related criminal activity defined.--In 
        section 6 (42 U.S.C. 1437d)--
                    (A) in subsection (l), in the last sentence after 
                paragraph (9)--
                            (i) by striking ``paragraph (5)'' and 
                        inserting ``paragraph (6)''; and
                            (ii) by inserting before the period at the 
                        end the following: ``, except that such term 
                        shall not include any such manufacture, sale, 
                        distribution, use, or possession of marihuana 
                        (as such term is defined in such section) that 
                        is in compliance with the law of the State in 
                        which such manufacture, sale, distribution, 
                        use, or possession takes place''; and
                    (B) in subsection (t)(7)(C), by inserting before 
                the period at the end the following: ``, except that 
                such term shall not include the use, distribution, 
                possession, sale, or manufacture of marihuana (as such 
                term is defined in section 102 of the Controlled 
                Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)) that is in compliance 
                with the law of the State in which such use, 
                distribution, possession, sale, or manufacture takes 
                place''.
            (3) Drug-related criminal activity defined.--In section 
        8(f)(5) (42 U.S.C. 1437f(f)(5)), by inserting before the period 
        at the end the following: ``, except that such term shall not 
        include any such manufacture, sale, distribution, use, or 
        possession of marihuana (as such term is defined in such 
        section) that is in compliance with the law of the State in 
        which such manufacture, sale, distribution, use, or possession 
        takes place''.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO QUALITY HOUSING AND WORK RESPONSIBILITY ACT OF 
              1998.

    Subtitle F of title V of the Quality Housing and Work 
Responsibility Act of 1998 is amended--
            (1) in section 576 (42 U.S.C. 13661)--
                    (A) in subsection (b)--
                            (i) in paragraph (1), by striking 
                        ``Notwithstanding'' and inserting ``Except as 
                        provided in paragraph (3) and 
                        notwithstanding'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``other 
                        than the use of marihuana described in 
                        paragraph (3),'' after ``controlled substance'' 
                        each place such term appears; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new paragraph:
            ``(3) State law exception.--A public housing agency or an 
        owner of federally assisted housing may not establish standards 
        prohibiting admission to the program or federally assisted 
        housing to any household with a member who engages in the use, 
        distribution, possession, sale, or manufacture of marihuana (as 
        defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 
        U.S.C. 802)) in compliance with the law of the State in which 
        such use, distribution, possession, sale, or manufacture takes 
        place.''; and
                    (B) in subsection (c), by adding after and below 
                paragraph (2) the following flush matter:
``For the purposes of this subsection, the term `criminal activity' 
shall not include the use, distribution, possession, sale, or 
manufacture of marihuana (as such term is defined in section 102 of the 
Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)) that is in compliance with 
the law of the State in which such use, distribution, possession, sale, 
or manufacture takes place.'';
            (2) in section 577 (42 U.S.C. 13662), by adding at the end 
        the following new subsection:
    ``(c) State Law Exception.--For the purposes of this section, the 
term `illegal use of a controlled substance' shall not include the use, 
distribution, possession, sale, or manufacture of marihuana (as defined 
in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)) that 
is in compliance with the law of the State in which such use, 
distribution, possession, sale, or manufacture takes place.'';
            (3) in section 579, by adding at the end the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(4) State.--The term `State' means the several States, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
        territories and possessions of the United States, and the Trust 
        Territory of the Pacific Islands.''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 580. ENFORCEMENT; SMOKE-FREE ZONES.

    ``(a) Enforcement.--The Secretary may not prohibit or otherwise 
discourage any activity involving the use, distribution, possession, 
sale, or manufacture of marihuana in federally assisted housing that is 
in compliance with the law of the State in which such activity takes 
place.
    ``(b) HUD Smoke-Free Zones.--Not later than 90 days after the date 
of the enactment of the Marijuana in Federally Assisted Housing Parity 
Act of 2021, the Secretary shall issue regulations that restrict 
smoking marihuana in federally assisted housing in the same manner and 
same locations as the Secretary restricts smoking tobacco in public 
housing under subpart G of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations (or 
any successor regulation).
    ``(c) Marihuana Defined.--In this section, the term `marihuana' has 
the meaning given such term in section 102 of the Controlled Substances 
Act (21 U.S.C. 802).''.
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