HB 1018: Smoking ban in public places.

Image by YOUscription on flickr.com, CC-BY

It began with county-wide ordinances, with some counties fully banning public smoking and others limiting smoking rights to enclosed bars.  Now, in a fairly unsurprising move by the Legislature, Indiana is now introducing legislation to enact a state-wide smoking ban.  For the purposes of this bill, “smoking” is defined as:

(1) carrying or holding of a lighted cigarette, cigar, or pipe or any other lighted smoking equipment; or
(2) inhalation or exhalation of smoke from lighted smoking equipment.

and “public place” as “an enclosed area in which the public is invited or permitted.”  The bill goes on to enumerate where the ban would be implemented:

Sec. 3. (a) Smoking is prohibited in the following:
(1) A public place.
(2) Enclosed areas of a place of employment.
(3) A vehicle owned, leased, or operated by the state if the vehicle is being used for a governmental function.
(4) Within twelve (12) feet of a public entrance to a public

If this were enacted into law and you were caught smoking by the Alcohol and Tobacco Commission (who will be responsible for enforcing this), you could face a Class B misdemeanor charge, which can carry up to 180 days in jail and up to $1,000 in fines (IC 35-50-3-3).

Fiscal Impact:
Because the smoking ban will also affect casinos and other gambling institutions, state revenue from these areas will likely be reduced.  In tax revenue alone (from the Riverboat Wagering Tax, Riverboat Admission Tax, and the Slot Machine Wagering Tax), Indiana stands to lose anywhere between $95.3M – $187.7M.

The taxes associated with these institutions fund other areas, which will upon loss of this revenue request it from the General Fund, West Baden Historical Hotel Preservation and Maintenance Fund, and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.  This decline is expected to cost anywhere between $95.3M – $187.7M, with the vast majority of this amount ($94.8 M -$186.5M) funded by the General Fund.

The top three areas affected by this law in terms of millions of dollars in lost revenue are Michigan City, Rising Sun, and Gary.  Madison and Shelby counties stand to suffer the most.

For more information, please refer to this bill’s fiscal impact statement (.pdf).

Committee Hearing:
This bill is assigned to the House Committee on Public Health.

This bill is scheduled for its first committee hearing on Wednesday, January 12th, upon adjournment in the House Chambers.

Analysis:
The way this reads, I’m fairly certain that electronic cigarettes such as Blu and its competitors will still be allowed; however, it does not go on to define “lighted” (which Blu is with its blue lighted tip) and as such devices still emit a sort of “smoke” in the form of water vapor, it’s not clear whether these will be allowed or not.

I expect some fight on this from the areas listed above, especially Michigan City and Gary.  They stand to lose upwards of $2.5M if this bill is enacted, and with the current economic climate the way it is, I don’t think this will pass without a fight from them.  I would not be surprised if this bill were enacted after removing ‘casinos’ from the lists of public places.

The good news is, you cannot be fired for telling on your coworkers for smoking.