D.C. Council Passes Bill Banning Smoking Within 25 Feet Of Parks, Bus Stops

If you're a smoker in D.C., you'll soon have fewer places to feed your habit.

On Tuesday the D.C. Council passed a bill forbidding smoking within 25 feet of city playgrounds, parks, recreation centers and bus stops. There are some 300 parks, playgrounds and recreation centers within city limits, as well as hundreds of bus stops.

The bill won't apply to federal parks, homeowners who live within 25 feet of a park, playground, recreation centers, or bus stops. It also exempts cigar and hookah bars, as well as some bars and restaurants and patios.

Smoking has been banned in bars and restaurants since 2007, and D.C. allows building owners to post no-smoking signs at their entrances, requiring smokers to stand at least 25 feet away. George Washington University's campuses and American University went smoke free this year and the Georgetown University Medical Center campus currently prohibits smoking.

Earlier this year Montgomery County passed a smoking ban at bus stops and bus shelters.

In related news, Council member Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7) introduced a bill that would ban smoking in cars carrying any passenger under the age of 12.