Agenda Date: 11/03/2015
Subject:
Title
An ordinance amending chapter 10 of title 6 of the city code pertaining to electronic smoking devices and smoking prohibitions in the downtown area.
Body
Presented By:
Mike Braaten, Deputy City Manager
POLICY QUESTION:
Does city council support establishing a smoking ban within a defined downtown area, excluding private parking lots, public alleys, back patios or rooftop patios?
BACKGROUND:
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It is a long-recognized fact that smoking and exposure to smoke causes cancer and other health issues. The US Surgeon General states there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke and that even brief exposure can be harmful to health1. Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights notes that, "secondhand aerosol from electronic smoking devices contains nicotine, ultrafine particles and low levels of toxins that are known to cause cancer." Additionally, they state that the, "ultrafine particles may exacerbate respiratory ailments like asthma and constrict arteries which could contribute to a heart attack.2"
1http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/secondhand_smoke/general_facts/
2http://no-smoke.org/getthefacts.php?id=824
In 2013, state law regulating smoking was amended to address the passage of the retail marijuana initiative. The state statue regulating public smoking includes a legislative declaration to, "preserve and improve the health, comfort, and environment of the people of this state by limiting exposure to tobacco and marijuana smoke." The law allows for local authorities (towns, cities and counties) to adopt laws more stringent than the state. Numerous cities throughout the state have adopted smoke-free zones, have prohibited smoking in certain public places in their communities and/or expanded their regulations to include electronic smoking devices; examples of cities include, but are not limited ...
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