State delays smoking ban

Publication Date: 2006-12-08

• Author:James McNair
• Publication:Cincinnati (OH) Enquirer

The state of Ohio agreed today not to enforce its new indoor-smoking ban until specific rules and regulations go into effect.

The decision was made after settlement talks between the Ohio Attorney General’s office and lawyers for two groups that had filed suits challenging the constitutionality of the Smoke Free Workplace Act that went into effect shortly after midnight.

The Ohio Department of Health has six months to write rules, but expects to do so sooner.

“We’ve been on a fast track from the beginning, so I don’t see that changing,” said Health Department spokesman Jay Carey. “We going to make sure we’ve got rules that are fair to everyone. As soon as the rules are implemented, enforcement will be.”