COUNTY OF ERIE
LOCAL LAW NO. -2018
LOCAL LAW INTRO 
THE PUBLIC HEALTH PROTECTION ACT OF 2018
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the County of Erie as follows:
Section 1: Legislative Findings and Intent
The Erie County Legislature hereby makes the following ?ndings and determinations:

There exists conclusive evidence that tobacco products are addictive, inherently dangerous and
cause cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, diabetes, negative birth and
developmental outcomes, allergies, and irritation to the eyes, nose, and throat. Scienti?c studies
have proven that cigarette smoking causes chronic lung disease, coronary heart disease, stroke,
and cancer of the lungs, larynx, esophagus, mouth, and bladder and contributes to cancer of the
cervix, pancreas, and kidneys. The use of cigars is also known to cause lung, larynx, esophageal,
and oral cancer. The US. Department of Health and Human Services has concluded that
nicotine is as addictive as cocaine or heroin.

Despite state laws prohibiting the sale of tobacco products to minors, access by minors to
tobacco products remains a major problem. The majority of all smokers begin using tobacco
products before age 18 and an estimated 3,000 minors begin smoking every day in the United
States.

This Legislature also ?nds that more than 130,000 adolescents and 2,500,000 adults in New
York State currently smoke. Each year about 13,000 New Yorkers are diagnosed with lung
cancer and about 9,400 men and women in New York State die each year of this disease.

This Legislature also ?nds that tobacco use is the foremost preventable cause of premature death
in the United States, causing over 440,000 deaths in the United States each year.

Furthermore, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has found secondhand smoke
to be a risk to public health and has classi?ed secondhand smoke as a Group A carcinogen.
Smoking is the most common cause of lung cancer and secondhand smoke increases the risk for
cancer. Exposure to secondhand smoke is the third leading cause of preventable death in this
country.

Erie County has a substantial public health interest in reducing the number of individuals of all
ages who use tobacco products, and in reducing tobacco dependence and the illnesses and
premature death associated with tobacco use and nicotine consumption.

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In the past, public campaigns to ban smoking in public spaces such as restaurants, movie theaters
and of?ce buildings, as well as within public vehicles, trains, buses, airplanes and near/around
public gathering spaces such as lobbies and around entrances to buildings have been enacted and
subsequently widely praised for protecting the public and public health.

Smoking in Motor Vehicles

Smoking in a small enclosed space, such as a motor vehicle, produces a level of toxicity in the
indoor air environment considerably greater than the level considered to be hazardous by the
United States Environmental Protection Agency. In motor vehicles, the consumption of tobacco
products is even more hazardous as tobacco particulates enter a vehicle?s upholstery and can
cycle back into the air, exposing passengers to toxins even after smoking in the vehicle has
ceased.

Exposure to secondhand smoke causes numerous health problems in all persons, especially
infants and children. Secondhand smoke has been linked to the onset of Sudden Infant Death
cancer and an increased risk of contracting bronchitis and pneumonia. Children are
especially vulnerable to the effects of secondhand smoke as they have smaller lungs and faster
breathing rates than adults.

The Erie County Legislature further ?nds that to promote and maintain the health, safety and
well-being of children, it is necessary to regulate and prohibit the smoking of tobacco products in
motor vehicles when children are present.

Sale of Tobacco Products in Health Care Institutions and Pharmacies

The Erie County Legislature further ?nds that the sale of tobacco products is inconsistent with
the mission of Licensed Health Care Institutions and pharmacies because it is detrimental to
public health and mitigates efforts to educate patients on the safe and effective use of medication.
This Legislature ?nds that the American Pharmacists Association and the Pharmacists Society of
the State of New York have called for the adoption of state and local prohibitions of tobacco
sales in pharmacies.

Smoking in/Adjacent to Bus Shelters
The Erie County Legislature further ?nds that public bus shelters and the public areas adjacent
thereto are being used by smokers as shelters during inclement weather and at other times,
thereby exposing bus riders to secondhand smoke which poses a public health threat and hazard
which must be addressed and prohibited.
Section 2: Definitions

As used in this Local Law, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

a) ?Child? shall mean any person under 18 years of age.

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b)

d)

g)
h)

j)

?Smoking? within the con?nes of a motor vehicle, as de?ned under New York State?s
Regulation of Smoking in Public and Work Places, shall mean the burning of a lighted
cigar, cigarette, electronic cigarette or electronic smoking device, pipe or any other
matter or substance which contains tobacco or nicotine.

?Tobacco Products? shall mean any product made or derived from tobacco or which
contains nicotine marketed or sold for human consumption, whether
consumption occurs through inhalation, or oral or dermal absorption. Tobacco product
does not include drugs, devices, or combination products authorized for sale by the state
or U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as those terms are de?ned in the Federal Food,
Drug and Cosmetic Act.

?Electronic Cigarette? or ?e-cigarette? shall mean any product containing or delivering
nicotine or any other substance intended for human consumption that can be used by a
person to simulate smoking through inhalation of vapor or aerosol from the product. The
term includes any such device, whether manufactured, distributed, marketed, or sold as
an e-cigarette, e-cigar, e-pipe, or ?vape? pen, vapes, vaporizers, hookah pens, or under
any other electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS).

?Licensed Health Care Institution? shall mean any facility or institution engaged
principally in providing services by or under the supervision of a physician or, in the case
of a dental clinic or dental dispensary, of a dentist, for the prevention, diagnosis or
treatment of human disease, pain, injury, deformity or physical condition, including, but
not limited to, a general hospital, public health center, diagnostic center, treatment center,
dental clinic, dental dispensary; or nursing home, residential health care facility, out-
patient lodge, general hospital or any entity subject to licensing by the New York State
Department of Health pursuant to New York Public Health Article 28.

?Pharmacy? means a pharmacy registered pursuant to Section 6808 of New York
Education Law.

?Commissioner? shall mean the Erie County Commissioner of Health.

?Department? shall mean the Erie County Department of Health.

?Bus Shelter? shall mean any covered structure at a bus stop, placed upon a sidewalk

or concrete pad in the County of Erie, providing protection against the weather for
people waiting for a bus.

?Public Place? shall mean any place open to the general public, including, for

example, streets, sidewalks, playgrounds, or bus stops. For sidewalks and driveways,
this shall include the curb or, if no curb, the edge of the pavement.

Section 3: Prohibitions

The following prohibitions shall be established under this Local Law:

Smoking in Motor Vehicles

The smoking of tobacco or an electronic cigarette in a motor vehicle in which a child is present
in the vehicle is prohibited and deemed unlawful. This prohibition extends regardless of whether
the vehicle is moving or parked or if the vehicle windows or doors are open.

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Sale of Tobacco or E-Cigarette Products in Health Care Institutions and Pharmacies

No Licensed Health Care Institution, Pharmacy or Retail Establishment that contains a pharmacy
within it located in Erie County shall sell or cause to be sold tobacco products or electronic
cigarettes.

Smoking In/Adjacent to Bus Shelters

The smoking of tobacco or an electronic cigarette containing nicotine upon any public place
adjoining or inside of any bus shelter is prohibited and deemed unlawful.

Bus transportation providers shall post ?No Smoking? or ?Smoke Free? signs or the international
?No Smoking? symbol, or both, in conspicuous places on their properties suf?cient to provide
public notice of this prohibition.

Section 4: Enforcement and Penalties
Smoking in Motor Vehicles

Any person who knowingly violates the provisions of this Local Law, upon conviction thereof,
shall be guilty of a violation punishable by a ?ne up to $50 for the ?rst offense after the end of
the grace period. A second offense shall be a Violation punishable by a ?ne up to $100. A third
offense shall be a violation punishable by a ?ne up to $150.

A grace period will be in effect for the ?rst 90 days after this Local Law is signed into law and
certi?ed by the New York State Secretary of State. During this time ?nes will not be rendered
and violators will be given warnings.

Sale of Tobacco or E-Cigarette Products in Health Care Institutions and Pharmacies

The Commissioner of the Erie County Department of Health shall have sole jurisdiction to
enforce the provisions of this provision of this Local Law. If the Commissioner determines after
notice and a hearing that a violation of Section 3 regarding the Sale of Tobacco or E-Cigarette
Products in Health Care Institutions and Pharmacies has occurred, the Commissioner may
impose a civil penalty in the minimum amount of $300, but not to exceed $1,000 for a ?rst
violation, and a minimum of $500, but not to exceed $2,000 for each subsequent violation.
Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the Commissioner from commencing a proceeding
for injunctive relief to compel compliance with this Local Law.

Hearings held pursuant to the authority of this Local Law shall be conducted in accordance with
the procedures set forth in the Erie County Sanitary Code by the Commissioner or his or her
designee. The decision of the Commissioner shall be reviewable pursuant to Article 78 of the
New York Civil Practice Law and Rules. The Erie County Attorney may bring an action in the
name of Erie County or the Erie County Commissioner of Health to recover the civil penalty
provided by this Local Law in any court of competent jurisdiction.

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Smoking In/Adjacent to Bus Shelters

Any person who knowingly violates the provisions of this Local Law, upon conviction thereof,
shall be guilty of a violation punishable by a ?ne up to $50 for the ?rst offense after the end of
the grace period. A second offense shall be a Violation punishable by a ?ne up to $100. A third
offense shall be a violation punishable by a ?ne up to $150.

A grace period will be in effect for the ?rst 90 days after this Local Law is signed into law and
certi?ed by the New York State Secretary of State. During this time ?nes will not be rendered
and violators will be given warnings.

The presence or absence of signs shall not be a defense to a violation of this section.

Section 5: Effective Date

This Local Law shall take effect upon ?ling with the New York State Secretary of State.

Section 6: Severability

If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part of this law or the application
thereof to any person, individual, corporation, ?rm, partnership, or Business shall be adjudged by
any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unconstitutional, such order or judgment shall
not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof but shall be con?ned in its operation to the
clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part of this law, or in its speci?c application.
Sponsors:

Peter J. Savage, 

John J. Mills
Patrick B. Burke

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