PORT ANGELES — Clallam County health commissioners today will consider options to allow smokers to light up closer to buildings than the 25 feet established by Initiative 901.
The meeting will start at 1:30 p.m. in the county commissioners’ hearing room of the Clallam County Courthouse, 223 E. Fourth St.
The new no-smoking law allows building owners to rebut the 25-foot requirement if they can prove that no smoke will enter an entrance, exit, window or ventilation intake.
Members of the Board of Health will discuss two proposed policies for reducing the no-smoking zone around a place of employment.
Both would require a building owner to pay an undetermined application fee, a written description of the proposed reduction, and a detailed map of the area where people may smoke.
Smoke test
One policy would require a smoke test performed by a licensed structural or mechanical engineer or by a certified industrial hygienist to prove that smoke would not enter the building.
The other would require only a written description of why the 25-foot limit cannot be met, a justification that unique circumstances prevent smoke from penetrating the building, and an explanation of how the situation will be monitored.
The Board of Health would rule on the applications.
The policy also applies the no-smoking rules to all places that are used by the public, regardless of their owners, and to areas where employees are expected to pass during their jobs.
Private homes are exempt unless they also provide licensed child care, foster care, adult care or a similar social service.
