Indoor Air Quality in Rental Dwellings

State Laws Addressing Radon, Mold and Secondhand Smoke

 

Arizona

The Smoke-free Arizona Act restricts smoking in public places and places of employment and provides for enforcement.

Ban on smoking. The Act prohibits smoking in all public places and places of employment within the state. Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) §36-601.01(B). The Act defines "public places" to include enclosed "common areas of apartment buildings, condominiums or other multifamily housing facilities." ARS §36-601.01(A)(9).

Under the Act, an enclosed area that is subject to the smoking ban includes a "reasonable distance from any entrances, windows and ventilation systems" so that the smoke does not enter the enclosed area through those means. Arizona Revised Statutes 36-601.01(A)(3). State regulations define a "reasonable distance" as 20 feet. Arizona Administrative Code §R9-2-102. Thus, smoking is prohibited both inside and within 20 feet of entrances, open windows, and ventilation systems of enclosed common areas of multi-family housing.

The law does not prohibit smoking within individual rental units and thus does not protect against smoke entering one apartment from another.

Enforcement. The state health agency is charged with enforcing the Act, and it may delegate that authority to another state agency or a political subdivision. Upon determining that a violation exists, the agency must issue a notice of violation to the person who owns or controls the public place or place of employment and must impose a civil penalty of between $100 and $500 for each violation. In a civil action to enforce the law, the court may impose a penalty and may issue an injunction. ARS §36-601.01(G). The law also provides that a person who smokes where smoking is prohibited is guilty of a petty offense, with a fine of not less than fifty dollars and not more than three hundred dollars. ARS §36-601.01(K).

 

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