County Executive Signs Sweeping Tobacco Legislation Into Law

December
31

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz held a press conference in the lobby of the Scott Bieler Clinical Sciences Center at Roswell Park on December 28th. He signed the Public Health Protection Act of 2018 into law, which is deemed the most substantial anti-tobacco legislation since the passage of the Clean Air Act in 1996.

The new law bans any smoking in a motor vehicle with a child under the age of 18. The law also ban the marketing and sales of tobacco– or nicotine-containing products, including e-cigarettes, in pharmacies and other healthcare institutions. Lastly, the law prohibits smoking in or adjacent to NFTA bus shelters and the public areas near them. The local law will impose a fine of $50 for the first offense and increase the penalty in increments of $50 for each additional offense.

Experts from Roswell Park provided data and evidence used by lawmakers to bring this legislation to fruition.

The research scientists who provide the scientific basis for tobacco-free air policies, the community engagers who educate leaders and community members on tobacco-free living, their Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center leader, and the legislative team that voted to protect Erie County citizens, especially our children.

See the news coverage from WIVB Channel 4.