BOMA Position
Second-hand smoke does not belong in buildings. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), it is an indoor air contaminant as well as a Group A carcinogen. Removing this health threat would protect building occupants, remove a significant liability concern for owners and tenants, and help improve overall air quality in commercial buildings.
Background
While the federal government has not enacted a workplace smoking ban, state and local governments have made such bans a priority. Many states have moved a step further by considering laws restricting smoking within certain distances of building entrances or air intakes.
BOMA International believes that a workplace ban on smoking is crucial to building occupants’ health and to the efficient management of office buildings. The presence of tobacco smoke results in increased cleaning costs and compromises indoor air quality. Office building tenants should be responsible for their employees’ compliance with a non-smoking policy, and building owners should not be held responsible if individual employees seek to circumvent such a ban.
In recent years, BOMA International has maintained its leadership in the battle to protect building occupants from secondhand smoke. Former BOMA International Presidents Bill Garland, Chip Julin and Tom McChesney have testified before Congress in favor of various measures that would ban smoking in buildings or limit it to specially designated areas where the air is vented directly outside.
Action Requested
Real estate professionals have the right to voluntarily ban smoking in their buildings and may also support legislation banning secondhand smoke in buildings. Local BOMA associations are encouraged to support smoking bans proposed by individual states, provinces or municipalities.