Christine Jordan Sexton
Smokers beware: There may be one less place you can light up in the Sunshine State.
The Senate Health Policy Committee on Tuesday gave the nod to Sen. Jeff Clemens‘ bill that makes it illegal to smoke cigarettes in a car if there’s a child under 13 traveling in the vehicle.
The bill — SB 548 — isn’t limited to just the driver, though. Anyone who chooses to to light up with young children in tow could be charged with a non-moving violation. According to a staff analysis, the fines will vary according to where the perpetrator lives. For instance, in Leon County a non-moving violation is a $116 violation but in Miami-Dade a non-moving violation is $129.
Seven states and the commonwealth of Puerto Rico already have banned smoking in vehicles that children. California and Oregon ban smoking in a car with children under the age of 18, whereas Vermont bans smoking in car with children under 8.
Clemens enjoyed bipartisan support from the Senate Health Policy Committee. Sen. Arthenia Joyner, a Democrat, says the state already has snuffed smoking in the workplace and needs to take steps to protect children.
Joyner said she “actually sheds tears” every time she sees a baby or young child in a car with a smoker.
“We have a moral responsibility to provide a safe environment for our children,” she said, supporting the bill.
Sen. Don Gaetz, a Republican who co-sponsored the bill, agreed with Joyner. He joked that as a “probationary member of the Liberty Caucus,” he realized that the bill was “government’s hand reaching into the car of somebody who is driving their own vehicle.” He added, though, that children are strapped-in passengers who cannot leave the vehicle and the adverse risks of second-hand smoke are too strong to ignore.
“Even those of us who have strong aversions to the hand of government lying heavy on free choice … have to support this bill.”
