State Status
No Preemption
Quote
"The American Lung Association/American Thoracic Society opposes all forms of preemption of state and local tobacco control authority. The ability of any government entity to enact tobacco control legislation is a cornerstone of an effective tobacco control policy. There is no trade-off worth the price of preempting a state or community's right to pass tobacco legislation."
American Lung AssociationPolicy Principle on Tobacco, April 1999
Arkansas
The Arkansas Clean Indoor Air Act went into effect on July 21, 2006. The law restricts smoking in workplaces, but allows smoking in non-public businesses with two or fewer employees, and in any restaurant or bar that prohibits people under age 21 at all times.
This law has significant flaws but it sets a strong floor, not a ceiling, for smokefree protections. It is a good step forward because it does not have provisions, such as smoking rooms, that would be barriers to future progress, and it has a strong anti-preemption clause that allows local communities to enact stronger laws. Read the Arkansas Clean Indoor Air Act.
To learn more about the law, visit Breathe
Easy Arkansas.
To report a compliance concern with the smokefree law, use the online
complaint form.
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Arkansas also enacted laws for smokefree state university campuses (effective August 1, 2010) and for smokefree cars when children are present who are required to be in child safety seats.
Arkansas law does not preempt the passage of local smokefree laws. Read more about current tobacco-related legislation in Arkansas.
Current tobacco-related statistics are available from the Centers for Disease Control's Tobacco Control State Highlights, 2010.
Arkansas's 2018 Legislative Session: February 12 - March 14
Legislative SummariesArchives
Action AlertsArchives
News SummariesArchives
- 7/31/2019States Are Thwarting Cities' Attempts to Govern Themselves
- 4/29/2019In Washington, Juul Vows to Curb Youth Vaping. Its Lobbying in States Runs Counter to That Pledge.
- 10/13/2017State lawmakers choose winners and losers through preemption
- 7/6/2017Blue Cities Want to Make Their Own Rules. Red States Won't Let Them.
- 5/10/2017The Threat of Super-Preemption
- 3/6/2017Preemption Prevents Innovation
- 2/21/2017City Rights in an Era of Preemption: A State-by-State Analysis
- 2/2/2017Red State, Blue City
- 1/5/2017GOP aims to rein in liberal cities
- 9/9/2016How ALEC, ACCE, and Preemption Laws are Gutting the Powers of American Cities
- 8/22/2016Blue Cities, Red States
- 6/28/2016Colorado Preemptions of Local Government: The Need for the Colorado Community Rights Amendment
- 6/23/2016State and Local Comprehensive Smoke-Free Laws for Worksites, Restaurants, and Bars--United States, 2015
- 4/6/2016From Fracking Bans To Paid Sick Leave: How States Are Overruling Local Laws
- 4/1/2016Growing Southern cities are increasingly targets of state pre-emption
- 3/25/2016Beyond North Carolina's LGBT Battle: States' War on Cities
- 2/4/2016Corporate Interests Take Aim at Local Democracy
- 8/6/2015Blowing the Whistle on ALEC's Little Brother ACCE
- 7/7/2015Four Ways ALEC Tried to Ruin Your State this Year
- 5/17/2015Say no: States increasingly blocking cities and counties from imposing mandates on businesses
- 5/8/2015State lawmakers hate federal meddling even as they preempt local government
- 3/30/2015The ALEC-Backed War on Local Democracy
- 2/23/2015Govern Yourselves, State Lawmakers Tell Cities, but Not Too Much
- 3/12/2013New Bill Aims to Ban Smoking in Public Places
- 7/24/2011New laws to go into effect in Arkansas, including sentencing reforms, copper
- 2/5/2010State Preemption of Local Smoke-Free Laws in Government Work Sites, Private Work Sites, and Restaurants United States, 2005-2009
- 7/22/2009Toughen smoking ban, urge activists
- 7/21/2009Group celebrates third anniversary of smoking ban
Press ReleasesArchives
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