I 111th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 4131 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES November 19, 2009 Mr. Adler of New Jersey (for himself and Ms. DeGette) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on House Administration and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To prohibit smoking in and around Federal buildings.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Smoke-Free Federal Workplace Act.

2.

Findings

Congress finds the following: (1)Secondhand smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, including at least 69 carcinogens. (2)Secondhand smoke is responsible for almost 50,000 deaths in the United States each year. (3)In 2006, the Surgeon General of the United States concluded that there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. (4)Secondhand smoke causes lung cancer and heart disease among adults who do not smoke. (5)Workplaces are a major source of secondhand smoke exposure. (6)The Surgeon General has concluded that smoke-free workplace policies are the only effective way to eliminate secondhand smoke exposure in the workplace. Separating smokers from nonsmokers, cleaning the air, and ventilating buildings cannot eliminate exposure. (7)An October 2009 report Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of the Evidence from the Institute of Medicine concludes that smoke-free laws reduce heart attacks. (8)A July 2009 Institute of Medicine report, Combating Tobacco Use in Military and Veteran Populations, recommended that the Department of Defense, the Armed Services, and the Veterans Administration raise the priority given to tobacco control throughout their organizations with the goal of achieving a tobacco-free military.

3.

Smoke-free Federal buildings

(a)

Smoke-Free Federal buildings

Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, smoking shall be prohibited in Federal buildings. (b)

Enforcement

(1)

Executive branch buildings

Each agency head or a designee shall take such actions as may be necessary to institute and enforce the prohibition contained in subsection (a) as such prohibition applies to all Federal buildings owned or leased for use by an Executive Agency. (2)

Judicial branch buildings

The Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall take such actions as may be necessary to institute and enforce the prohibition contained in subsection (a) as such prohibition applies to all Federal buildings owned or leased for use by an establishment in the judicial branch of the Government. (3)

Legislative branch buildings

(A)

House of representatives

The House Office Building Commission shall take such actions as may be necessary to institute and enforce the prohibition contained in subsection (a) as such prohibition applies to Federal buildings owned or leased for use by the House of Representatives. (B)

Senate

The Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate shall take such actions as may be necessary to institute and enforce the prohibition contained in subsection (a) as such prohibition applies to Federal buildings owned or leased for use by the Senate. (C)

Other establishments

The Architect of the Capitol shall take such actions as may be necessary to institute and enforce the prohibition contained in subsection (a) as such prohibition applies to all Federal buildings owned or leased for use by an establishment in the legislative branch of the Government (other than the House of Representatives and the Senate). (4)

Fines for noncompliance

(A)

In general

Each of the officials referred to in paragraphs (1) through (3) shall implement an enforcement process to impose a fine on an individual who fails to comply with the prohibition contained in subsection (a). (B)

Fine amounts

The official shall impose a fine of $250.00 for a first offense, $500.00 for a second offense, and $1,000 for any subsequent offense.

4.

Preemption

(a)

In general

Nothing in this Act is intended to preempt any provision of a law in a State or political subdivision of a State that is more protective than a provision of this Act. (b)

More protective laws

Nothing in the Act shall be interpreted as prohibiting a Federal agency or department, including a military installation or Veterans Administration facility from implementing more protective smoke-free or tobacco-free laws.

5.

Definitions

For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions apply: (1)

Executive agency

The term Executive agency has the same meaning such term has under section 105 of title 5, United States Code. (2)

Federal agency

The term Federal agency means any Executive agency and any establishment in the legislative or judicial branches of the Government. (3)

Federal building

The term Federal building means any building or other structure (or portion thereof) and 25 feet from the perimeter of such building, courtyard, areas used for children’s playgrounds, or structure owned, leased, or leased for use by a Federal agency; except that such term does not include any building or other structure on a military installation, any health care facility under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or any area of a building that is used primarily as living quarters. (4)

Military installation

The term military installation means a base, camp, post, station, yard, center, homeport facility for any ship, or other facility under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense, including any leased facility. Such term does not include any facility used primarily for civil works (including any rivers and harbors project or flood control project) or buildings used by civilian defense employees.