Smoking in Your Car Could Cost You $500.00

At least in Oregon . . . if you have a child in the car and if . . . . well, here is (as Paul Harvey would say) the rest of the story.

As of the first of the year, it is against the law to smoke in a car with children present in the state of Oregon. It is considered borderline child abuse.
 
I am a wellness advocate. My whole career is focused on helping families create a healthier environment. I teach awareness and simple solutions to problems like:

"Of chemicals commonly found in homes, 150 have been linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer and psychological abnormalities." 1

My work does not involve the legal system and so this legislation was news to me.  I found this article quite compelling.

As recounted by The Oregonian's Christian Gaston, Jim Thompson (R-Dallas) compared smoking with little kids in the car to a parent who would "strap your kids in the back of a car and smoke them like bacon."
 
The smoker faces a fine of $250 for a first offense and $500 for subsequent ones.

The police will not be able to pull over a vehicle simply because someone is smoking in a car with children present. They will first have to cite another violation, such as speeding, running a stop sign or changing a lane without proper notice.

Although some lawmakers objected to Oregon going too far to police personal conduct,Thompson, said the state is right to protect chlldren from second-hand smoke in such closed quarters.

The Oregon House passed Senate Bill 444  in a 43-15 vote, against the objections of some lawmakers who groused about it as a “nanny state” provision, or questioned its effectiveness.

What do you think?





sources:
http://www.evhealthyliving.com/peggy
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/06/oregon_legislature_passes_ban.html
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/12/smokers_beware_smoking_in_a_ca.htmlhttp://www.evhealthyliving.com/peggy

No Smoking in Cars with Kids

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - California motorists will risk fines of up to $100 next year if they are caught smoking in cars with minors, making their state the third to protect children in vehicles from secondhand smoke.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday signed a bill that will make it an infraction to smoke in a vehicle if someone under age 18 is present. But the traffic stop would have to be made for another offense, such as speeding or an illegal turn, before the driver could be cited for smoking.

The ban, which takes effect Jan. 1, joins a string of smoking prohibitions adopted in California, including a ban on smoking in enclosed workplaces and within 25 feet of a playground.

A Harvard School of Public Health report issued last year said secondhand smoke in cars can be up to 10 times more of a health risk than secondhand smoke in a home.

"Protecting the health of our children is among government's highest responsibilities," said the bill's author, state Sen. Jenny Oropeza, a Democrat. "It is clear that increasing public awareness about the dangers of secondhand smoke is the right thing to do."

At least 20 states and a number of municipalities have considered limiting smoking in cars where minors are present. Arkansas now bans smoking in cars with children age 6 and younger, while Louisiana has limited it when children 13 and younger are in the vehicle. Maine lawmakers will take up the issue in January.

By Steve Lawrence, Associated Press writer; TH 10-11-07