Other Businesses
Other Businesses
Economic Impact Study
The report examining the economic impact of the Smoke-Free Arizona Act is now available here. The study, prepared by the W.P. Carey School of Business, Arizona State University, includes the analysis of actual sales data for restaurants and bars, and the results of a survey of owners and managers of restaurants and bars in Arizona that was conducted prior the implementation of the Act and repeated one year later. The report also includes a literature review on the effects of tobacco regulations on the hospitality industry in the United States and in other countries. Click here to view the entire report.
Smoke-Free Arizona Act
Overview
Smoking is not allowed in most enclosed public places and places of employment including (but not limited to):
- Office buildings and work areas such as meeting rooms, employee lounges, classrooms, and private offices
- Retail stores, malls, and shopping centers
- Health care facilities, hospitals, health care clinics, and doctor’s offices
- Restaurants, bars, grocery stores, or any establishment that serves food
- Lobbies, elevators, restrooms, reception areas, halls, stairways, and any other enclosed common-use areas in public and private buildings including condominiums and other multiple-unit residential facilities
- Company-owned or employer-owned vehicles when operated during working hours if the vehicle is occupied by more than one person
- Enclosed common areas in hotels and motels
- Tribes are Sovereign Nations. The Smoke-Free Arizona Act does not apply to businesses located on Indian reservations.
- Local units of government may enact ordinances that are more restrictive than the Smoke-Free Arizona Act. Local ordinances, if more stringent, remain in effect after the implementation of the Smoke-Free Arizona Act.
- Outdoor patios are exempt from the Smoke-Free Arizona Act. Click here to view a complete list of exemptions
Go Smoke Free
Tips for Going Smoke Free
Inform your employees about the Law. Some effective ways to communicate with your employees are listed below:
Existing Employees
- Discuss the requirements of the Act at staff meetings or distribute memos or paycheck inserts
- Add a "No Smoking" policy to your employee manual
- Post your "No Smoking" policy on your company website
- Display an informational poster in the employee lounge or break room
- Distribute Smoke-Free Arizona brochures during employee training
- Include articles in your employee newsletter about the requirements of the Act and the health effects of secondhand smoke
- Encourage employees to visit smokefreearizona.org for more information about the Act
Prospective Employees
- Add a brief description of the Act on your employee application form
- Include an agreement policy that explains the requirements of the Act on the application and requires the applicant to check a box confirming that they have read the information
- Discuss the requirements of the Act briefly during candidates' interviews
- Disclose your smoking policy on your company website
- Post a link to smokefreearizona.org on your website
- Provide assistance to your employees who want to quit:
- Inform employees of any cessation benefits available through your company health plan
- Arizona offers some excellent and effective resources free of charge to all Arizonans who want to quit smoking: The Arizona Smokers' Helpline (ASHLine) is a toll free number that provides phone counseling. ASHLine offers professional, on-going support (available in both English and Spanish) to all tobacco users looking for help with quitting. Services include personalized quit plans, medication assistance, quit coaches, interactive Web programs, telephone counseling, and self-help materials. To contact ASHLine, please call 1-800-556-6222.
The ASHLine web site, www.ashline.org, provides expert advice on quitting strategies for smokers, advice for non-smokers who are supporting someone trying to quit, and tips for healthcare providers. The web site also provides free fact sheets, and links to local tobacco cessation projects.
Videos About Smoke-Free Establishments
To view educational videos about businesses with a smoke-free environment click here.
Comply with the Law
What you need to do to comply with the Law
- Remove all indoor ashtrays and smoking receptacles and move all outdoor ashtrays and smoking receptacles at least 20 feet away from entrances
- Post the required "No Smoking" signs at every entrance into your establishment, available free of charge available free of charge click here
- Educate all existing and prospective employees about the Act
- Prohibit anyone including employees, vendors, and customers from smoking inside and within 20 feet of all entrances into your place of business
- Politely inform violators smoking inside or within 20 feet of an entrance to extinguish their lit tobacco product or to go outside and at least 20 feet away from the entrance to smoke
Communication is the Key
To make this transition as easy as possible for your employees, customers or visitors, it’s important to effectively communicate information about the new Law and your establishment’s responsibility in complying with the Law. The better you know and understand the Law, the easier it will be you to explain the Law to your employees. Here are some helpful tips you can share with your employees:
- Be understanding of your employee’s desire to smoke. Politely inform him or her about any designated smoking areas near the building
- Emphasize that it is the establishment’s responsibility to comply with the Law, and by not complying with the Law, the establishment or individual can be fined
- Focus your discussion with employees and customers on the health benefits of going smoke-free instead of focusing on the smokers themselves
- Secondhand smoke has been proven to cause lung cancer and heart disease and has been linked to asthma and other serious respiratory problems
- Secondhand smoke contains more than 60 cancer-causing compounds
- A person standing two feet away from a burning cigarette may inhale 10 times the cancer-causing chemicals than the person actually smoking the cigarette because the smoke inhaled by the active smoker is filtered while the smoke inhaled by the non-smoking bystander is not
Violations & Penalties
Reporting Violations
The public is encouraged to report businesses that are not in compliance with the Smoke-Free Arizona Act to the Arizona Department of Health Services. Complainants may choose to remain anonymous. County health departments are in charge of investigating complaints about violations of the Smoke-Free Arizona Act. The county health department will notify the business owner about the complaint, and/or conduct an inspection within 15 days after receipt of the complaint.
Complaints may be reported to the Arizona Department of Health Services by:
- Submitting an online form
- Sending an e-mail
- Calling the toll-free number
1-877-4-AZNOSMOKE
(1-877-429-6676)
Penalties
If a violation is found, the business owner will receive a warning notice and is subject to fines between $100 to $500 per violation per day or up to $5,000 per violation per day if a Superior Court determines there is a pattern of noncompliance. An individual who smokes where prohibited is guilty of a petty offense and may be fined between $50 to $300.
To view the rules click here.
