Smokefree Air Act regulations explained

It has come to my attention lately that some may be confused about what is and isn?t included in Iowa?s Smokefree Air Act. The Iowa Smokefree Air Act (Iowa Code § 142D), enacted July 1, 2008, protects the health of the public and employees by preventing exposure to secondhand smoke (also known as environmental tobacco smoke) and the 4,000 chemicals and 69 cancer-causing compounds it is known to contain. The Smokefree Air Act prohibits smoking in almost all public places and enclosed areas within places of employment, as well as some outdoor areas. In all honesty, I have had to check with the ?pros? at the Iowa Department of Public Health on a few items myself. With all of the stipulations and exceptions, the confusion can be understandable.

So where are the places in Iowa where smokers are prohibited from lighting up? All public indoor places, such as bars, restaurants and businesses are included in the Smokefree Air Act. Smoking is also prohibited in all company used vehicles. There are a few, limited exemptions, including the gaming floor of casinos and up to 20 percent of hotel rooms. For many hotels rooms, however, there is no accurate way to eliminate smoke from entering the no-smoking areas, making the issue null.

It is especially in outdoor spaces when the interpretation of the law is hazy. For that, I refer to fact sheets from iowasmokefreeair.gov as a reference. Key phrases are underlined for emphasis.

For entertainment venues: Smoking is not allowed in the designated seating areas (permanent or temporary) of outdoor entertainment venues where members of the general public assemble to witness entertainment events, including but not limited to: stadiums, sports arenas, amphitheaters and bleachers.

For seating and serving areas of a restaurant: Smoking is prohibited in all outdoor seating or serving areas of restaurants. These areas include all outdoor places where customers are seated and served food or beverages. Smoking is allowed in a defined outdoor area of a restaurant, such as a patio or a portion of a patio, provided that there is no seating in such area and no restaurant employee serves food or beverages to a patron in such area.

For public grounds: The Smokefree Air Act prohibits smoking on the grounds of state and local government buildings. For example this includes all county courthouses and maintenance shops.

For school grounds: Smoking is prohibited on school grounds, including parking lots, athletic fields, playgrounds, tennis courts and any other outdoor area under the control of a school. Smoking is prohibited inside any vehicle located on school grounds. This would include any baseball/softball fields owned by the schools that would be located away from the main campus of the school.

In summary, the Smokefree Air Act applies to all businesses, including vehicles. This also includes all golf courses, bars and restaurants that serve food or drinks outside, as well as all grounds of our courthouse and school grounds.

Over the last couple years of the enactment, I have personally witnessed violations of the law in all of the following locations across Iowa: hotels, car dealerships, school grounds, golf courses and outdoor patios for bars and restaurants. If you witness these violations, please make a report to IDPH; visit iowasmokefreeair.gov to file a complaint or call 888-944-2247. If needed, the complaint can be made in confidence. According to a report by the American Cancer Society and the American Lung and Heart Associations, tobacco-related hospitalizations in Iowa have declined 10.7 percent and have saved $348 million in costs in the two years since passage of the Smokefree Air Act. It is important to protect the law and ensure that it is adequately enforced if these benefits are to continue.

If you or someone you know is trying to quit smoking, visit the Quitline Iowa hotline at 800-QUIT NOW. Quitline Iowa is a toll-free, statewide smoking cessation telephone counseling hotline. Trained counselors provide callers with information about the health consequences of tobacco use, assistance in making an individualized quit plan, and on-going support through optional follow-up calls.

Lynne Zoulek is the Sigourney Youth Tobacco Prevention (formerly known as JEL) adult sponsor.