BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1142
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 16, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS AND WILDLIFE
Anthony Rendon, Chair
AB 1142 (Bloom) - As Amended: March 21, 2013
SUBJECT : State beaches and parks: smoking ban
SUMMARY : Prohibits any person from smoking, or disposing of
used tobacco products, on a state coastal beach or within a
state park. Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes it unlawful for any person to smoke a cigar, cigarette,
or other tobacco-related product on a state coastal beach or
in a unit of the state park system.
2)Prohibits any person from disposing of used cigar, cigarette,
or tobacco-related product waste within the boundaries of a
state coastal beach or unit of the state park system.
3)Makes any person who violates this bill guilty of an
infraction, punishable by a fine of $250.
4)Requires the Department of Parks & Recreation (DPR) to develop
and post signs at state coastal beaches and units of the state
park system to provide notice of the smoking prohibition by no
later than January 1, 2016.
5)Defines specific terms for purposes of this bill.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Makes it an infraction for a person to smoke within 25 feet of
a playground or sandbox area.
2)Prohibits smoking inside a public building, or in an outdoor
area within 20 feet of a main exit, entrance or window of a
public building, or in a state-owned passenger vehicle.
Authorizes a person to smoke in any other outdoor area of a
public building unless otherwise prohibited by state law or
local ordinance, and a sign describing the prohibition is
posted.
3)Allows cities, counties and colleges to adopt more restrictive
ordinances prohibiting smoking.
AB 1142
Page 2
4)Requires DPR to administer and protect state park properties
for the use and enjoyment of the public. Prohibits smoking in
state parks upon a finding of extreme fire hazard by DPR,
except as allowed in designated areas.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : The author has introduced this bill to ban smoking
on state beaches and in all state parks in order to protect
public lands and public health from the dangers that cigarette
litter and second hand smoke pose. Background information
provided by the author's office describes the problems created
by cigarette litter for beaches and the marine environment. For
example, in 2009 over 1.6 million pieces of cigarette butt
litter were retrieved from U.S. beaches, according to the
Surfrider Foundation. During the 2008 Coastal Cleanup Day in
California, 340,000 cigarette butts were collected from
California beaches. Cigarette butts have been the most common
type of trash found during coastal cleanup days for the past 24
years in a row. Cigarette litter has been found in the stomachs
of fish, birds, whales and other marine animals who mistake them
for food. Cigarette filters also contain cellulose acetate, a
type of plastic that breaks down slowly and never fully
decomposes. According to information provided by the Surfrider
Foundation, the toxic chemicals in used cigarette filters also
leak out into the aquatic environment when submerged in water.
The Surfrider Foundation estimates that Americans discard more
than 175 million pounds of cigarette butts every year. In
addition to the litter problems associated with cigarettes,
smoking poses forest fire hazards and was the cause of four of
the 25 worst wildfires in California between 1929 and 1999,
causing the state billions of dollars.
In addition to the litter problems and fire hazards created by
smoking, the author notes the hazards of second hand smoke,
noting that tobacco-related illnesses are the leading cause of
preventable death in the United States. Tobacco smoking causes
an estimated 443,000 deaths per year, of which 73,000 are
nonsmokers, according to data provided by the Centers for
Disease Control. The U.S. Surgeon General has concluded there
is no risk-free level of exposure to second hand smoke, and the
California Air Resources Board has categorized second hand smoke
as a carcinogen.
AB 1142
Page 3
A five year national study conducted by the Ocean Conservancy
from 2001 through 2006 and funded by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, known as the National Marine Debris
Monitoring Program Report (2007) found that the most dominant
land-based items of debris collected were straws, balloons and
metal beverage cans. The leading ocean-based items of debris
were pieces of rope, clumps of fishing line, and floats and
buoys. However, a similar study conducted by the Ocean
Conservancy in 2005 on coastal cleanups found cigarette butts
were the number one most common debris item, representing 31.4%
of the total debris collected. Other studies have found that
the non-biodegradable plastic in cigarette butt filters can be
toxic when consumed by marine wildlife. Toxic chemicals leached
from discarded cigarette butts were also found to present a
biohazard to water fleas, which play an important role in
aquatic ecosystems by transferring energy and organic matter
from primary producers such as algae to higher consumers such as
fishes. The Ocean Protection Council's Implementation Strategy
on Marine Debris recommends that smoking be prohibited on state
beaches.
Some supporters of this bill cite to a study showing the levels
of secondhand smoke exposure outdoors can reach levels attained
indoors. The study cited in support of these claims was
conducted by researchers at Stanford University and published in
the Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association in May
2007. The study, which is entitled "Real-Time Measurement of
Outdoor Tobacco Smoke Particles," was the first peer reviewed
study of systematic measurements of outdoor tobacco smoke
concentrations. The main conclusion of the study was that
outdoor tobacco smoke levels can be substantial under certain
conditions, but are highly dependent on wind conditions and
proximity to active smokers. The study found during periods of
active smoking, peak and average outdoor tobacco smoke levels
near smokers could rival indoor tobacco smoke concentrations,
but that outdoor tobacco smoke levels dropped almost instantly
after smoking activity ceased. Unlike indoor levels of second
hand smoke, which decay slowly over a period of hours, outdoor
tobacco smoke levels dropped abruptly to zero when smoking
ended. In addition, outdoor tobacco smoke levels approached
zero at distances greater than 2 meters from a single cigarette,
and were nearly zero when in a constant upwind direction from an
active cigarette. Nevertheless, the study found outdoor tobacco
smoke levels can be high during periods of smoking in locations
where persons are near active smokers, especially when downwind.
AB 1142
Page 4
Therefore, it is possible for outdoor tobacco smoke to present a
nuisance or hazard under certain conditions. Examples given of
scenarios where outdoor tobacco smoke levels might be high
include eating dinner with a smoker on an outdoor patio, sitting
next to a smoker on a park bench, or standing near a smoker
outside a building. The study also noted children who accompany
a smoking parent or guardian may experience substantial
exposure, and persons who spend a significant portion of their
time within a few feet of active smokers are also likely to
receive relatively large total outdoor tobacco smoke exposures
over the course of a day, possibly exceeding the EPA 24-hr
health standard for fine particles. If one is upwind from a
smoker, levels most likely will be negligible. However, if the
smoker's position changes or one spends time downwind from a
smoker, then moving to a distance of 2 meters can reduce the
likelihood of experiencing elevated particle exposure from
outdoor tobacco smoke.
Related Legislation : SB 4 (Oropeza) of 2010 would have made it
an infraction for an individual to smoke on a state beach or a
state park, but would have made the prohibition enforceable only
in those state parks where signs have been posted notifying the
public of the prohibition. That bill also included exceptions
for adjacent parking lots and for areas of state beaches
designated as campsites. That bill also authorized but did not
mandate DPR to post signs, and provided that new signs would be
erected only when existing signs were replaced in order to
reduce costs to the state park system. SB 4 was vetoed by then
Governor Schwarzenegger who objected to mandating in state law
that people not smoke outdoors in certain areas.
DPR at the time raised concerns with SB 4, based primarily on
the cost pressure to DPR to provide signage and community
outreach, and the challenges of enforcement. DPR currently
prohibits smoking in state park buildings, on trails, on
specific guided walks, and during high fire seasons. The state
park system includes 300 miles of state beaches and 279 state
park units throughout the state, covering a total of 1.3 million
acres. Since it will be infeasible and cost prohibitive to
posts signs everywhere, DPR noted enforcement of the smoking
prohibition could be uneven and inequitable.
Policy Issues for Committee's Consideration : This bill
prohibits smoking in all state parks and state beaches,
including parking lots, campsites, picnic areas and trails. The
AB 1142
Page 5
committee may wish to consider whether for practical reasons
this bill should be amended to exempt parking lots and
individual campsites, particularly where campfires, which also
produce smoke, are allowed in the campsites. The committee may
also wish to consider whether this bill should be amended to
remove the mandate for DPR to post signs, and instead make the
smoking prohibition enforceable in areas where signs notifying
the public of the ban have been installed, in order to reduce
costs and allow for a phase in of direct costs to DPR.
Support Arguments : Supporters emphasize smoking in state parks
contributes to environmental degradation and to the costs for
litter cleanup and fire prevention. Cigarette butts are the
number one litter item and do not biodegrade. Cigarette filters
left on beaches also release harmful chemicals into the
environment. This bill will reduce litter, save the state money
on cleanup costs, and improve public health. This bill will
also help to enact the Ocean Protection Council's Implementation
Strategy on Marine Debris, which recommends prohibiting smoking
on state beaches and providing ash receptacles at transition
points. Heal the Bay also suggests that cigarette butt
receptacles be provided in adjacent parking lots.
Double Referral : This bill is double-referred to the Assembly
Governmental Organization Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Lung Association
Californians Against Waste
Clean Water Action
County Health Executives Association of California
Heal the Bay
Sierra Club California
Surfrider Foundation
Turtle Island Restoration Network
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Diane Colborn / W., P. & W. / (916)
319-2096
AB 1142
Page 6