Town Bans E-Cigarettes

Oklahoma Town Bans E-Cigarettes on Public Property

In an attempt to mitigate the dangers of smoking, one Oklahoma town passed a surprising ordinance last week to ban the use of smokeless e-cigarettes on public property.

The ordinance, which was approved by the Ada City Council and will go into effect in November, bans the public use of traditional tobacco products as well as electronic cigarettes. Residents will soon be forbidden from lighting up—or vaping—on all government-owned property, ranging from parks to indoor and outdoor government facilities. Offenders could be fined up to $500 for violating the ban.

In an interview with local news station KWII, Angela Harjo, the Tobacco Prevention Coordinator for the Pontotoc County Health Department, explained the motivation for banning public use of e-cigarettes:

[E-cigarettes have] far less carcinogens, and we're not saying to completely outlaw or ban [them]. We're just asking to treat them as a tobacco product and limit the exposure and second hand exposure, especially exposure to our youth.

Ada City Councilman Bryan Morris said that while the ban is about “being considerate to those in parks and other public places,” the city could receive a $100,000 grant from the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust for including e-cigarettes in the ordinance.