Golden Smoking Ban, Smoking Bans Colorado, Colorado Smoking Bans, CO

Golden Smoking Ban, Smoking Bans Colorado, Colorado Smoking Bans, CO

Last week, the City of Golden announced a new smoking ban than will further limit where smokers can light up around the Colorado city.

In January of 2006 the Colorado Clean Air Act went into effect prohibiting smoking in most public places such as restruants, bars, clubs and enclosed workplaces. Casinos were eventually added to the list of places where smoking was not allowed in 2008.  Last week Golden’s City Council took things a step further by unianamously voting to ban smoking in even more public places across the city.  This new ban will make it illegal to smoke on city sidewalks, in parks, walking trails and open spaces, at all public events and at Fossil Trace Golf Course and Clear Creek RV Park.  

Smoking bans are becoming more and more common across the country as fewer and fewer Americans become smokers. Pueblo and  Summit County issued smoking bans before the State of Colorado in 2003 and 2005 respectively and in 2009 Boulder banned smoking in public buildings and outdoor smoking less than 15 feet from any building entrance.   The American Cancer Society estimates that in 1965 nearly 42% of the United States’ Population smoked where as in 2012 only about 18% did.

Golden’s ban on smoking is unique because it does not stop at cigarettes.  The city is also prohibiting the use of e-cigarettes and vaporizer in public spaces and at all public events.

The new ordinance will take effect on January 1^st of 2015 and violators will be charged $50 per offense.