Dayton, Ky. bans smoking in public places
Smoking and vaping in restaurants and enclosed public places will be banned in a second Northern Kentucky city following the passage of a city council ordinance Tuesday.
With a 3-2 vote, Dayton city councilors passed the "Smoke Free Air Ordinance," which will take effect 60 days from its passage date. Individuals who smoke in areas prohibited by the ordinance face a fine not to exceed $50, the ordinance states. Business owners who knowingly fail to comply with the ordinance may receive an initial warning before a $100 fine and face an additional $250 fine for infractions after that.
The ban also includes "all private and semi-private rooms in long-term care facilities" and "all hotel and motel guest rooms," according to the ordinance.
Unlike the new law, Dayton would become the 42nd Kentucky city, along with the metro governments for Lexington and Louisville, to ban indoor smoking. The laws in two of those cities, Frankfort and Leitchfield, are similar to Dayton's in not covering workplaces, according to data compiled by the University of Kentucky School of Nursing. Eleven counties have at least partial indoor smoking bans.
"The Dayton City Council believes that this ordinance is needed to protect the public health and welfare by prohibiting smoking in public places and places of employment, guarantee the right of all residents and visitors to breathe smoke-free air, and recognize that the need to breathe smoke-free air shall have priority and override the desire to smoke in all places of employment and public places in the City of Dayton," the council wrote in the ordinance.
Dayton Mayor Ben Baker did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.
More:What is thirdhand smoke? Cincinnati Children's study finds children may be at risk from it
Second smoking ban in Northern Kentucky
In 2019, the city of Williamstown in Grant County, similarly banned smoking indoors and in public buildings and public places of employment. The city also banned smoking in public outdoor patio spaces such as restaurant patios.
A partial indoor smoking ban took effect in Kenton County in 2011. The county is the only northern Kentucky county with a ban in place. The state of Ohio has had a statewide smoking ban since 2006. The ban prohibits smoking in most restaurants except bars that don't allow individuals aged 18 and under.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Dayton becomes second Northern Kentucky city to implement smoking ban
