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Smoke-Free Illinois Act

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Can you please explain what the Clean Indoor Air Act is and how it pertains to us in Illinois?

The Illinois Clean Indoor Air Act was actually replaced by the Smoke-Free Illinois Act on January 1, 2008. This Act basically prohibits smoking in many public places – not just offices. According to the Act, smoking is not permitted in any of the following public establishments:

·         Workplaces

·         Offices

·         Theaters

·         Museums

·         Libraries

·         Schools

·         Shopping centers and retail stores

·         Bars

·         Clubs

·         Gaming facilities

Illinois is not the only state that bans smoking in public places. In fact, there are 22 other states throughout the country that do not prohibit smoking in public places that are an enclosed area. An enclosed area is any space between a floor and a ceiling that is enclosed with walls, windows, or doors, according to the Act. The definition includes interior lobbies and corridors of buildings that are enclosed.

The Act was put into place as a result of a 2006 report by the U.S. Surgeon General that estimates that second-hand smoke alone kills about 65,000 people per year and nearly 3,000 in the state of Illinois.

In terms of the businesses that are impacted, all employers must abide by the Act, including individuals, partnerships, associations, corporations, non-profit employers and contractors that have multiple employees. Both public and private employers are impacted by the Act.

Employers should be aware that smoking is not only prohibited in the enclosed space within the office, but also in any area that employees will have to pass through in orer to enter the place of employment, including entrances and exits. Therefore, smokers must not smoke within 15 feet of the entrance, exit, windows at open, or where a ventilation system intakes air, even when the space is outside of the enclosed office space.

However, if an employee works from home, a home office is not considered by the Act to be qualifying place of employment, sunless the home also provides licensed child care, adult care, or foster care on site. Therefore, employees that contract with an employer may not have to adhere to the Act when they are working from home.