Preemptive State Smoke-Free Indoor Air Laws --- United States, 1999--2004

Publication Date: 2005-03-17

• Author:Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Publication:Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

One of the national health objectives for 2010 is to eliminate laws that preempt stronger tobacco-control laws (objective no. 27-19) (4). In 1999, CDC published a list of states that, as of December 31, 1998, had laws that preempted stronger local smoking restrictions in one or more of three environments: government worksites, private-sector worksites, and restaurants (5). This report updates that list and summarizes changes in preemptive state smoke-free indoor air laws during 1999--2004 for these three environments. The findings indicate that almost no progress is being made toward the 2010 goal of eliminating all preemptive state smoke-free indoor air laws, resulting in the potential for lesser health protection.