§ 20-122.1. Smoking prohibited.

(1)

Definitions . For the purposes of this section, the following terms, phrases, words and derivations shall have the meaning given herein, unless it shall be apparent from the context that a different meaning is intended:

(a)

Area of public accommodation means any enclosed area or room in a public place to which the public is invited or permitted, and which is designated or arranged to accommodate the public or is otherwise open to the public, including, but not limited to, schools, retail stores, food service establishments, arenas, banks, grocery stores, food markets, libraries, hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, health care facilities, child care facilities, theaters, courthouses, office buildings, museums, auditoriums, convention halls, public meeting rooms, hotels, motels, transportation terminals and facilities, and any other type of commercial service establishment, including any waiting rooms, restrooms, stairwells, hallways, corridors, and elevators therein and busses, taxis, limousines, and any other vehicle for hire or vehicle used for public transportation.

(b)

Arena means any sports pavilion, stadium, gymnasium, health spa, health club, clubhouse, boxing arena, swimming pool, roller and ice skating rink, bingo hall, dance hall, gaming hall, bowling alley, and other similar place where members of the public assemble to engage in physical exercises, participate in athletic competition or witness sports, cultural or similar events.

(c)

Employee means any person who is employed by an employer in return for the payment of direct or indirect monetary wages or profits or any person who volunteers his or her services to such employer.

(d)

Employer means any person, partnership, association, corporation, non-profit or governmental entity which employs one (1) or more persons.

(e)

Enclosed area means any indoor area of public accommodation and on outdoor area whether open or not within one hundred (100) feet of any doorway, stairway or passageway providing means of ingress and egress to an area of public accommodation.

(f)

Food service establishment means any restaurant, diner, coffee shop, cafeteria, cafe, luncheonette, sandwich stand, short order cafe, soda fountain or shop, or any other commercial eating establishment, or part of any organization, club boardinghouse, or guesthouse, which gives or offers for sale food to the public, guests or patrons, whether food is customarily consumed on or off the premises.

(g)

Indoor area means all space which is enclosed by a tent or is enclosed on all sides by floor-to-ceiling solid walls, windows or floor-to-ceiling partitions, irrespective of the size of such areas and of any doorway, stairway or passageway providing means of ingress and egress to such area.

(h)

Open to the public means those areas in which the general public must go to conduct business or gather information.

(i)

Person means any individual person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, organization, or legal entity of any kind.

(j)

Retail store means any place which in the regular course of business sells goods directly to the public.

(k)

Secondary smoke means that smoke which people are involuntarily exposed, either through a smoker exhaling smoke from a tobacco product or other weed or plant non-tobacco product, or electronic cigarette or through the lighting, burning or triggering inhalation or emission from of any such product or device.

(l)

Smoke or smoking shall have the same definition as that given in section 20-121.

(m)

Tobacco product means and includes products containing tobacco, tobacco related products, tobacco substitutes, including but not limited to other plants or smoke or vapor-producing substances and/or liquids placed into an electronic cigarette to the exclusion of nicotine cessation therapy products.

(n)

Work area means any workplace which contains:

(i)

Any enclosed areas on the premises of a place of employment where two (2) or more employees are assigned to sit or otherwise be present in the performance of their duties and where such employees share common work spaces, equipment of facilities or shares a common heating, air conditioning or other ventilation system;

(ii)

Any enclosed area on the premises of a place of employment which is occupied by a single employee, but which area is frequented by other employees and/or general members of the public during the normal course of business, or shares a common heating, air conditioning or other ventilation system with another work area.

(o)

Workplace means any building or structure used by any person, sole proprietorship, partnership, association, joint venture, corporation or other entity formed for profit-making, charitable, educational or governmental purposes, including, but not limited to professional corporations and other entities where legal, medical, dental, health care, engineering, architectural, financial, counseling, and other professional or consumer services are provided.

(p)

Worksite means any enclosed area of a workplace or portion thereof intended for occupancy by any employee.

(2)

Smoking restrictions .

(a)

Except as otherwise provided by this section, it shall be unlawful for any person to smoke or carry a lighted cigarette, cigar, pipe or any other form of smoking or electronic cigarette device of any form name or derivative object in any enclosed area or any indoor area of public accommodation or within twenty-five (25) feet from the entry way of any parish building.

(b)

Except as otherwise provided by this section, it shall be unlawful for any person to smoke or carry a lighted cigarette, cigar, pipe or any other form of smoking object in any worksite or work area of any workplace.

(c)

It shall be the duty and responsibility of an employer to provide a smoke-free work area for all employees who desire a smoke-free work area.

(d)

It shall be unlawful for any person who owns, manages, operates or otherwise controls the use of any premises in which smoking is prohibited pursuant to this section, or the designated agent thereof to fail to comply with any provisions of this section, including the failure to post signs, and failure to enforce the smoking prohibition on the premises.

(3)

Posting of signs. Signs, designating by words or graphics, that smoking is prohibited shall be of such size and color to be clearly legible and shall be prominently and conspicuously posted at all major entrances to, and appropriate locations within each enclosed or indoor area where smoking is prohibited by this section. Lack of signs or notice shall not be a defense for a violation of this section.

(4)

Penalties. The violation of this section is declared to be a nuisance and in addition to the penalties provided in section 1-10, any person who violates this section shall be liable for a civil penalty of not more than one hundred dollars ($100.00) for the first offense, and two hundred dollars ($200.00) for a second offense.

(5)

Waiver, suspension and exceptions.

(a)

The parish council may, by resolution, suspend or exempt in whole or in part, any class or type of business or establishment from the provisions of this section or part of this section, for either a definitive period of time or indefinitely, if it determines that factors exist which would render strict compliance with this section unreasonable or create undue financial hardship on the businesses affected.

(b)

The parish council may, by resolution, grant a waiver from the application of a specific provision of this section to any individual owner, operator, manager or employer of any premises or establishment governed by this section, either for a definitive period of time or indefinitely, provided the applicant for a waiver shall establish that compliance with a specific provision of this section would cause the applicant undue financial hardship or that other factors exist that would render strict compliance unreasonable.

(c)

Nothing in this subsection, or in any resolution of suspension, exemption or waiver shall be construed to preclude any owner, operator, manager, employer or other person having control of any premises or establishment governed by such resolution of suspension, exemption or waiver from prohibiting smoking in such establishment to a greater extent than is provided in such resolution, and any such prohibition established shall have the force and effect of the prohibitions provided in this section and subject to the same penalty for violation thereof.

(d)

The parish council shall, by resolution, establish criteria for implementation of a policy to provide exemption, waivers, or suspensions, including but not limited to the requirement for a separate heating, air conditioning or other ventilation system or other structural changes in order to accommodate the preferences of smokers and non-smokers.

(6)

Amendments and re-enactments . Hereafter, any amendment or re-enactment of section 20-121, 20-122, or section 20-122.1 of the Code or any change, by resolution or administrative policy relative to the implementation of said sections, shall be retroactive and shall relate back to the date of adoption of this section.

(Ord. No. 18836, § 1, 8-25-93; Ord. No. 25175 , § 3, 6-22-16; Ord. No. 25602 , § 6, 6-27-18)

Cross reference

Hospital service districts, § 17-16 et seq.