Rendell signs smoking-ban law

Publication Date: 2008-06-13

• Author:Tom Barnes
• Publication:Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Gov. Ed Rendell traveled today to Montgomery County, home of the two legislators who were the strongest advocates of a ban on smoking in public places, to sign the state's new Clean Indoor Air Act.

Mr. Rendell went to Ambler, just north of Philadelphia, a town in the legislative districts of Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, a Republican, and Rep. Michael Gerber, a Democrat. They'd pushed strongly for enactment of the law that will ban smoking in 95 percent of Pennsylvania workplaces and public places.

"All Pennsylvanians will benefit from the persistence of advocates and legislators who refused to quit working until we had joined dozens of other states in banning smoking in most public places," Mr. Rendell said...

The bill, Senate Bill 246, will take effect in 90 days, meaning Sept. 11. The state Health Department will have the main responsibility of enforcing compliance with the law. The Philadelphia Health Department will continue to enforce that city's separate smoke-free law, which is two years old.