Ohio bans smoking in truck cabs
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- It looks like Smokies behind billboards aren't the only things truckers in Ohio have to be mindful of. How about actual smoking in their truck? Not only does the state notoriously have some of the toughest state trooper highway enforcement in the U.S., but it could now have the most stringent smoking laws too. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Ohio's new public smoking ban in workplaces encompasses company vehicles, including truck cabs, which, like bars and restaurants, must remove ashtrays and display non-smoking signs. But like a similar law in Ontario, the anti-smoking rule won't apply to interstate truckers or owner-operators. Family-owned and operated trucks are also exempt if drivers are related to the owner. Still, the new rule has regional drivers fuming. One driver told the newspaper he would probably defy the law, questioning how it could even be enforced on mobile workplaces like trucks. Tracy Sabetta, head of the SmokeFree Ohio campaign, said enforcement would be mostly based on complaints. Larry Davis, president of the Ohio Trucking Association, said the group will ask the next state legislature to exempt truck drivers. Among more than a dozen states with public smoking bans, Ohio appears to be the only one that bans smoking in trucks, according to the newspaper. North of the border, Ontario became the first province in Canada this past June to ban smoking in truck cabs. However, the provincial law -- which restricts all smoking in enclosed public spaces and workplaces, including commercial trucks and taxis -- doesn't trump a separate, federal anti-smoking bill that governs federally regulated carriers. Federally regulated trucks fall under Ottawa's Non-smokers Health Act, which allows employers to designate smoking areas within the workplace. -- with files from the Cleveland Plain Dealer