AN ACT Relating to removing the discretion of owners or managers of restaurants, card rooms, and bowling alleys to choose to allow smoking areas other than in a lounge, bar, or other area where persons under eighteen years of age are not permitted to enter or remain; amending RCW 70.160.020, 70.160.030, and 70.160.040; creating a new section; and providing an effective date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 70.160.020 and 1985 c 236 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

As used in this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1) "Lounge or lounge area" means an area: (a) Used for the preparation, sale, and service of beer, wine, or spirits that is licensed for such use by the Washington state liquor control board; and (b) that is conspicuously posted at all entrances that persons under twenty-one years of age are not permitted to enter or remain.

(2) "Smoke" or "smoking" means the carrying or smoking of any kind of lighted pipe, cigar, cigarette, or any other lighted smoking equipment.

((~~(2)~~)) (3) "Public place" means that portion of any building or vehicle used by and open to the public, regardless of whether the building or vehicle is owned in whole or in part by private persons or entities, the state of Washington, or other public entity, and regardless of whether a fee is charged for admission.

Public places include, but are not limited to: Elevators, public conveyances or transportation facilities, museums, concert halls, theaters, auditoriums, exhibition halls, indoor sports arenas, hospitals, nursing homes, health care facilities or clinics, enclosed shopping centers, retail stores, retail service establishments, financial institutions, educational facilities, ticket areas, public hearing facilities, state legislative chambers and immediately adjacent hallways, public restrooms, libraries, restaurants, waiting areas, lobbies, and reception areas. A public place does not include a private residence. This chapter is not intended to restrict smoking in private facilities which are occasionally open to the public except upon the occasions when the facility is open to the public.

((~~(3)~~)) (4) "Restaurant" means any building, structure, or area used, maintained, or advertised as, or held out to the public to be, an enclosure where meals are made available to be consumed on the premises, for consideration of payment.

Sec. 2. RCW 70.160.030 and 1985 c 236 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

No person may smoke in a public place except as provided in ((~~designated smoking areas~~)) RCW 70.160.040.

Sec. 3. RCW 70.160.040 and 1985 c 236 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) ((~~A smoking area may be designated in a public place by the owner or, in the case of a leased or rented space, by the lessee or other person in charge except in:~~

(a) Elevators; buses, except for private hire; streetcars; taxis, except those clearly and visibly designated by the owner to permit smoking; public areas of retail stores and lobbies of financial institutions; office reception areas and waiting rooms of any building owned or leased by the state of Washington or by any city, county, or other municipality in the state of Washington; museums; public meetings or hearings; classrooms and lecture halls of schools, colleges, and universities; and the seating areas and aisle ways which are contiguous to seating areas of concert halls, theaters, auditoriums, exhibition halls, and indoor sports arenas; and

(b) Hallways of health care facilities, with the exception of nursing homes, and lobbies of concert halls, theaters, auditoriums, exhibition halls, and indoor sports arenas, if the area is not physically separated. Owners or other persons in charge are not required to incur any expense to make structural or other physical modifications in providing these areas.

~~Except as provided in other provisions of this chapter,~~)) No public place, other than a bar, tavern, ((~~bowling alley~~)) card room or enhanced card room, tobacco shop, lounge or lounge area, or ((~~restaurant~~)) any other area where persons under eighteen years of age are not permitted to enter or remain and such designation is conspicuously posted at all entrances, private hire buses, and taxis that are clearly and visibly designated by the owner to permit smoking, may be designated as a smoking area ((~~in its entirety~~)). If a bar, tavern, card room or enhanced card room, tobacco shop, lounge or lounge area, or ((~~restaurant~~)) other area where persons under eighteen years of age are not permitted to enter or remain is designated as a smoking area ((~~in its entirety~~)), this designation shall be posted conspicuously ((on)) at all entrances normally used by the public.

(2) Where smoking areas are designated, existing physical barriers and ventilation systems shall be used to minimize the toxic effect of smoke in adjacent nonsmoking areas.

(3) ((~~Managers of restaurants who choose to provide smoking areas shall designate an adequate amount of seating to meet the demands of restaurant patrons who wish to smoke.~~)) Owners of restaurants are not required to incur any expense to make structural or other physical modifications in providing these areas, except as determined in the regulations developed under subsection (4) of this section. ((~~Restaurant patrons shall be informed that separate smoking and nonsmoking sections are available.~~))

(4)(a) By December 31, 2002, the department of health, in consultation with the liquor control board and the department of labor and industries, shall adopt rules for the purpose of protecting the health of nonsmokers from the hazards of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke. These rules shall address at least the following issues:

(i) Ensuring that smoking occurs at a reasonable distance away from any area where smoking is prohibited, to ensure that tobacco smoke does not enter the area; and

(ii) Mechanical and/or physical barriers between nonsmoking and smoking areas in restaurants, restaurant lounges, and other applicable locations.

(b) Before making rules under this subsection, the secretary of health shall consider proposed rules to be developed and approved by a task force of nine members, four of which shall be appointed by the secretary of the department of health from a list submitted by the Washington restaurant association, and four of which shall be appointed by the secretary of the department of health from a list submitted by the Washington alliance for tobacco control and children's health. The ninth member and chair of the task force shall be the attorney general or his or her designee. The task force shall report its results to the appropriate legislative committees and the secretary of the department of health by December 31, 2001. These rules shall take effect July 1, 2003.

(c) The rules adopted under this subsection shall be enforced by local health departments under this chapter unless the legislature determines that another enforcement entity is more suitable.

(d) In the event of a question or dispute regarding the applicability of the rules adopted under this subsection, interpretations of the state department of health shall be controlling.

(5) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a facility or area may be designated in its entirety as a nonsmoking area by the owner or other person in charge.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. This act shall not be interpreted or construed to permit smoking where it is otherwise restricted by other applicable state laws.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. This act takes effect December 31, 2001.