BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - After years of trying, a West Monroe lawmaker has successfully persuaded the full Legislature to ban smoking within 25 feet of a public entrance to a state-owned office building.
The Senate gave final passage to Republican Rep. Frank Hoffmann’s bill with a 31-6 vote Wednesday.
Hoffmann has pushed the proposal for years as a way to lessen exposure to secondhand cigarette smoke but previously ran into opposition from senators.
Gov. Bobby Jindal will next consider making the bill a law.
A person caught smoking within 25 feet of a public entrance to state office buildings or a wheelchair ramp leading to an entrance would pay $25 for the first offense, $50 for a second offense and $100 for subsequent offenses.
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House Bill 168 can be found at www.legis.la.gov
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