Some D.C. residents haven’t been able to take advantage of the legalization of recreational marijuana. The District law is modeled around “home grow, home use,” and it remains illegal to use marijuana in public or in establishments like bars and clubs. But people who live in federally assisted housing, which includes public housing and Section 8 housing, can be evicted for marijuana use.

A new bill introduced on Thursday by D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton would change that. The Marijuana in Federally Assisted Housing Parity Act of 2019 explicitly permits marijuana use in federally assisted housing if adult and/or medical use is otherwise legal in that jurisdiction (not including D.C., either medical or adult marijuana use is legal in 33 states). Approximately 17,000 D.C. families live in public housing or Section 8 project-based housing, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

“Individuals living in federally funded housing should not fear eviction simply for treating their medical conditions or for seeking a substance legal in their state,” Norton said in a press release. “Increasingly, Americas are changing their views on marijuana, state by state, and it is time that Congress caught up with its own constituents. With so many states improving their laws, this issue should have broad bipartisan appeal because it protects states’ rights.” She introduced the same bill in the previous session of Congress, but it was not enacted.

Norton is a member of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, and consistently speaks out against a congressional rider that prevents D.C. from being able to tax and regulate weed. After Democrats won the House of Representatives in the 2018 elections, Norton told DCist she was confident that she could remove that amendment from future appropriations bills, clearing the path for dispensaries in the District.

This weekend, Norton is celebrating the vaunted weed holiday 4/20 by giving a speech at the National Cannabis Festival at RFK.