O2259F:\P,tty\M u n i Law\Consu me rP rotection\Smoki ng\2007p roject\o rd2d rdg 042208
City Council Meeting: April 22, 2008 Santa Monica, California
225s
ORDINANCE NUMBER (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA AMENDING CHAPTER 4.44 OF THE SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL
CODE ON SMOKING TO MAKE BUSINESS OWNERS AND MANAGERS LIABLE
UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES, REQUIRE POSTING OF NO SMOKING
SIGNS, REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF FINES, AND PROHIBIT SMOKING ON PUBLIC
LIBRARY PROPERTY
WHEREAS, the November 2006 amendment to the outdoor smoking ordinance
prohibited smoking in outdoor dining areas but did not create any liability for business
owners; and
WHEREAS, since November 2006 staff has received numerous complaints of
customers smoking at outdoor dining areas at local restaurants; and
WHEREAS, in many of these cases the business owners responded to staffs
inquiries by stating that the current law does not require owners to enforce the no-
smoking rule or make. them liable, and they refused to make an effort to curtail the
illegal smoking at their outdoor patios; and
WHEREAS, visual surveys in late 2007 found that smoking was still occurring at
a substantial number of outdoor dining areas in Santa Monica; and
WHEREAS, making owners, operators and managers liable will increase the
effectiveness of the outdoor smoking law since they 'can control the conduct at their
private establishments; and
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WHEREAS, making .owners, operators and managers liable for smoking at
outdoor dining areas will make it easier to enforce the ordinance through undercover
inspections since no confrontation with patrons or citations of patrons will be necessary;
and
WHEREAS, making owners, operators and managers liable for smoking at
outdoor dining areas will help level the playing field for local restaurants by assuring that
none can cater to a smoking clientele; and
WHEREAS, making owners, operators and managers liable for smoking at
outdoor dining areas will bring Santa Monica into uniformity with the other nearby cities
that ban smoking at outdoor dining areas; and
WHEREAS, many other California cities, including three in Los Angeles County
that impose liability on businesses for smoking at outdoor dining areas require the
posting of prominent no smoking signs; and
WHEREAS, the posting of no smoking signs in qutdoor dining areas will facilitate
the enforcement of the law by patrons as well as employees; and
WHEREAS, staff has received complaints from some cited individuals that the
current $250 fee for violations of the ordinance is disproportionately high, especially
when taking into account the mandatory penalty assessment that the court adds in
every criminal case; and
WHEREAS, most California cities impose initial fines of $100 for violating outdoor
smoking ordinances, with fines increasing to $200 and $500 respectively for subsequent
violations, as does the state indoor workplace smoking law; and
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WHEREAS, the public and Library staff have complained about chronic second-
hand smoke adjacent to the Mairi Library,
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 4.44 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code is hereby
amended to read as follows:
CHAPTER 4.44
REGULATION OF SMOKING
Section 4.44.010 Definitions.
The following words and phrases, as used in this Chapter or in any
other applicable law regulating smoking, shall have the following
meanings:
(a) Dining area. A non-residential location where food or
beverages are served by a business or routinely consumed by customers.
This includes but is not limited to restaurant or bar seating areas and
patios.
(b) Service area. A place where people use or wait for services
provided by a private or government entity. This includes but is not limited
to bus stops, ATM lines, information kiosks and theater lines.
(c) Smoke or smoking. The carrying. or holding of a lighted pipe,
cigar, cigarette, or any other lighted smoking product or equipment used to
burn any tobacco products, weed, plant, or any other combustible
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substance. Smoking includes emitting or exhaling the fumes of any pipe,
cigar, cigarette, or any other lighted smoking equipment used for burning
any tobacco product, weed, plant, or any other combustible substance.
Section 4.44.020 Prohibitions.
(a) Smoking in Specific Locations.
It shall be unlawful to smoke in the following places:
(1) Any elevator;
(2) Any public park;
(3) Any public beach;
(4) Anywhere on the Santa Monica Pier;. except in designated
areas;
(5) Any outdoor service area;
(6) Inside any public building (as that term is defined in
Government Code Section 7596);
(7) Any outdoor dining area;
(8) Within twenty feet of the entrance, exit or open window of
any building open to the public,
(9) The Third Street Promenade;
(10) Any Farmers Market;
(11) The property of any public library.
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(b) Disposal of Smoking Waste.
No person shall dispose of any cigarette, cigar or tobacco, or any
part of a cigarette or cigar, in any place where smoking is prohibited under
this Chapter, except in a designated waste disposal container.
(c) Liability of Businesses.
No business owner, operator or manager shall knowingly or
intentionally allow smoking in an outdoor dining area that is under his, her
or its control. This law does not require the physical ejection of any person
from the business or the taking of steps to prevent smoking under
circumstances that would involve a significant risk of physical harm.
(d) Posting of Signs.
Every business that owns or controls an outdoor dining area
covered under subsection (a)(7) shall post one or more prominent signs in
conspicuous locations to apprise users of the prohibition of smoking in that
outdoor dining area, Multiple signs must be provided as needed for larger
areas to ensure that signs are readily visible to all users of the area.
(e) Enforcement and Penalties.
(1) Infraction. A violation of this Section is an infraction and shall
be punished by a fine of one hundred dollars for the first violation; two
hundred dollars for a second violation within one year; and five hundred
dollars for a third and subsequent violations within one year.
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(2) Nonexclusive Remedies and Penalties. Punishment under this
Section shall not preclude punishment pursuant to Health and Safety
Code Section 13002, Penal Code Section 374.4, or any other law
proscribing the act of littering. Nothing in this Section shall preclude any
person from seeking any other remedies, penalties or procedures
provided by law.
Section 4.44.030 Sale of tobacco by vending machine or other
mechanical device or out of package.
(a) Purpose. The City Council finds cigarette smoking and other
tobacco use by minors to be a continuing problem with grave public health
consequences. Studies show that the vast majority of adult smokers
began as teenagers, and That teenagers who .begin using tobacco before
the age of fifteen eventually have much higher cancer rates than non-
tobacco using teenagers. In recognition of the Surgeon General's
conclusion that nicotine is as addictive as cocaine or heroin, action is
needed to curtail the easy access of minors to cigarettes and other
tobacco products. The purpose of this Chapter is to implement a strict and
enforceable system to prevent the illegal sale of cigarettes and other
tobacco products to minors.
(b) Vending Machines. On or after May 1, 1991, no person shall
sell or dispense cigarettes or other tobacco products by vending machine
or any other device that automatically sells or dispenses tobacco products.
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(c) Out of Package Sales Prohibited. If is unlawful to sell
cigarettes out of the manufacturer's package or without required health
warnings.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices
thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such
inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary
to effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision bf any
court of competent jurisdiction; such decision shall .not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would
have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause,
or phrase hot declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion
of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage
of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the
official newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become
effective 90 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
J Y' V i
MA SHA ES MOU IE
Ci ttorn
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Approved and adopted this 22nd day of April, 2008.
State of California )
County of Los Angeles) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Beth Sanchez, Assistant City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby certify that
the foregoing Ordinance No: 2259 (CCS) had its introduction April 8th, 2008, and was
adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting held on April 22nd, 2008, by the
following vote:
Ayes: Council members:
Noes: Council members
Abstain: Council members:
Absent: Council members:
Genser, McKeown
Mayor Pro Tem Bloom, Mayor Katz
None
None
Holbrook, O'Connor, Shriver
A summary of Ordinance No. 2259 (CCS) was duly published pursuant to California
Government Code Section 40806.
ATTEST:
j~~2 f~l'
Beth S chez, Assis nt City Clerk