Roseville Council Enacts Universal Ban on Public Indoor Smoking

Roseville’s city council voted unanimously to enact a universal ban on indoor public smoking at its Monday meeting.

Indoor smoking was already banned in most retail establishments, but the council’s action closed a loophole that allowed tobacco shop patrons to “sample” products by smoking them.

“This is an item that’s moved fairly quickly through our process, but it is a relatively minor adjustment to our code,” Mayor Dan Roe said. “The primary objective is to not facilitate the opening of Hookah bars in our tobacco retail establishments.”

In Minnesota, most indoor public smoking is proscribed by the Freedom to Breathe Act passed by the legislature in 2007.

The council also voted on Monday to permit the sale of new tobacco products such as tobacco-laced mints and e-cigarettes.