(A) The town does hereby find that:
(1) Numerous studies have found that tobacco smoke is a major contributor to indoor air pollution, and that breathing secondhand smoke (also known as environmental tobacco smoke) is a cause of disease in healthy non-smokers, including heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease and lung cancer. The National Cancer Institute determined in 1999 that secondhand smoke is responsible for the early deaths of up to 65,000 Americans annually. (National Cancer Institute (NCI), “Health Effects of Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke: the Report of the California Environmental Protection Agency. Smoking and Tobacco Control Monograph 10,” Bethesda, MD: National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute (NCI), August 1999);
(2) The Public Health Service’s National Toxicology Program has listed secondhand smoke as a known carcinogen. (Environmental Health Information Service (EHIS), “Environmental Tobacco Smoke: First Listed in the Ninth Report of Carcinogens,” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Public Health Service, National Toxicology Program, 2000);
(3) Secondhand smoke is particularly hazardous to elderly people, individuals with cardiovascular disease and individuals with impaired respiratory function, including asthmatics and those with obstructive airway disease. Children exposed to secondhand smoke have an increased risk of asthma, respiratory infections, sudden infant death syndrome, developmental abnormalities and cancer. (California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal EPA), “Health Effects of Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke”, Tobacco Control 6(4): 346-353, Winter, 1997);
(4) The Americans With Disabilities Act, which requires that disabled persons have access to public places and workplaces, deems impaired respiratory function to be a disability. (Daynard, R.A., Environmental Tobacco Smoke and the Americans with Disabilities Act, being 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq., Non-Smokers’ Voice 15(1): 8-9);
(5) The U.S. Surgeon General has determined that the simple separation of smokers and non-smokers within the same air space may reduce, but does not eliminate, the exposure of non-smokers to secondhand smoke. (Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Involuntary Smoking: A Report of the Surgeon General. Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, 1986.) The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that secondhand smoke cannot be reduced to safe levels in businesses by high rates of ventilation. Air cleaners, which are only capable of filtering the particulate matter and odors in smoke, do not eliminate the known toxins in secondhand smoke. (Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “Indoor Air Facts No. 5: Environmental Tobacco Smoke,” Washington, D.C.: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), June 1989);
(6) A significant amount of secondhand smoke exposure occurs in the workplace. Employees who work in smoke-filled businesses suffer a 25% to 50% higher risk of heart attack and higher rates of death from cardiovascular disease and cancer, as well as increased acute respiratory disease and measurable decrease in lung function. (Pitsavos, C.; Panagiotakos, D.B.; Chrysohoou, C.; Skoumas, J.; Tziournis, K.; Stefanadis, C; Toutouzas, P., “Association Between Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke and the Development of Acute Coronary Syndromes; the CARDIO2000 Case-control Study,” Tobacco Control 11(3): 220-225, September 2002);
(7) Smoke-filled workplaces result in higher worker absenteeism due to respiratory disease, lower productivity, higher cleaning and maintenance costs, increased health insurance rates and increased liability claims for diseases related to exposure to secondhand smoke. (“The High Price of Cigarette Smoking,” Business & Health J5(8), Supplement A; 6-9, August 1997);
(8) Numerous economic analyses examining restaurant and hotel receipts and controlling for economic variables have shown either no difference or a positive economic impact after enactment of laws requiring workplaces to be smoke-free. Creation of smoke-free workplaces is sound economic policy and provides the maximum level of employee health and safety. (Glantz, S.A. & Smith, L. the Effect of Ordinances Requiring Smokefree Restaurants on Restaurant Sales in the United States. American Journal of Public Health, 87:1687-1693, 1997; Column, R.; Urbonas, C.M., “The Economic Impact of Smoke-free Workplaces: An Assessment for Nova Scotia, Prepared for Tobacco Control Unit, Nova Scotia Department of Health,” GPJ Atlantic, September 2001); and
(9) Smoking is a potential cause of fires; cigarette and cigar butts and ash stains on merchandise and fixtures causes economic damage to businesses. (“The High Price of Cigarette Smoking,” Business & Health 15(8), Supplement A: 6-9, August 1997.)
(B) Accordingly, the town finds and declares that the purposes of this chapter are:
(1) To protect the public health and welfare by prohibiting smoking in public places and places of employment; and
(2) To provide the opportunity for all individuals to breathe smoke-free air.
(Ord. 04-001, passed 6-22-2004)