Boulder County has updated its Smoke-Free ordinance to align with the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act and to keep up with similar and expanded smoke-free laws passed by several county municipalities.
Many municipalities have additional smoke-free protections such as including electronic smoking devices and creating outdoor smoke-free spaces, according to a Boulder County news release.
“We believe that updating this ordinance to include unincorporated Boulder County will increase health equity,” said Rachel Freeman, program coordinator for the Tobacco Education and Prevention Partnership at Boulder County Public Health, in a news release. “It is imperative we maintain a consistent healthy environment in and around our county.”
In July 2019, the Longmont City Council voted to expand the city’s smoke-free ordinance to areas in downtown, according to the Longmont Downtown Development Authority news release. The Smoke-Free Zone in downtown Longmont includes:
- Main Street between First Avenue and Longs Peak Avenue; which includes the avenues off Main Street around the corners to the alleys (alleys not included)
- Breezeways on the east and west side of Main Street between Third and Sixth avenues.
The county’s updated ordinance, which went into effect on June 27, includes the following updates:
- Added regulations of electronic smoking device use, in addition to conventional smoking
- Added language to include electronic vaping devices and protections from secondhand vapor
- Not allowing smoking or vaping 25 feet of business entryways
- Not allowing smoking in public service areas (bus stops, public transportation)
- Adding protections from smoking and vaping in some parks and recreation spaces.
Public Health will work with businesses to oversee compliance, focusing first on education about the ordinance and second-hand smoke. Businesses will be fined after three occurrences of the same violation within 12 months, the Boulder County news release states.
