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S 1493

Relates to regulation of PFAS as a toxic air pollutant

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Cordell Cleare and 9 co-sponsors

New Jersey would end the smoking exemption for casinos and casino simulcasting facilities, making indoor areas open to the public smoke-free 90 days after enactment.

REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION
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Bill Summary · S 1493

Note on source material
The metadata accompanying your request lists the title as relating to PFAS, and also contains entries from multiple jurisdictions (New Jersey, Massachusetts, and U.S. Senate activity). The primary bill text and committee statement you provided, however, are an amendment to New Jersey’s Smoke‑Free Air Act (P.L.2005, c.383) that removes the existing smoking exception for casinos and casino simulcasting facilities. This summary focuses on that New Jersey bill text and related legislative material.

Bill at a glance

  • Bill number: S-1493 (New Jersey reprint SHH 1/29/24 1R)
  • Subject: Amend New Jersey Smoke‑Free Air Act to prohibit smoking in casinos and casino simulcasting facilities
  • Key statutory target: Amends Section 5 of P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-59)
  • Effective date (as amended): 90th day after enactment
  • Status (per provided history): Reported out of Senate Health, Human Services & Senior Citizens Committee with amendments (1/29/2024); various subsequent referrals listed in supplied history.

Purpose / intent

To eliminate the existing exemption in New Jersey’s Smoke‑Free Air Act that allows smoking within the perimeter of casinos and casino simulcasting facilities. The stated intent is to protect casino workers and patrons from secondhand smoke and associated health risks, citing research (NIOSH and Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine) finding elevated exposure and health risks for casino employees.

Key provisions and changes

  • Deletes the exemption in Section 5(e) for:
    • Indoor areas within the perimeter of casinos (as defined under state casino law) that are open to the public for wagering; and
    • Casino simulcasting facilities approved by the Casino Control Commission that meet specified size/operation thresholds.
  • Leaves in place other existing exemptions in Section 5, including:
    • Registered cigar bars/cigar lounges that met specific 2004 income/location rules;
    • Tobacco retail establishments and designated smoking areas therein;
    • Tobacco business testing facilities used for manufacturing/testing cigars/pipe tobacco;
    • Private homes, residences and private automobiles;
    • Approved research laboratory facilities used exclusively for clinical research;
    • A golf course;
    • Up to 15% of municipal/county beaches if designated by ordinance.
  • Committee amendment: changes effective date from immediate upon enactment to the 90th day after enactment.

Who would be affected

  • Casino employees (floor staff, dealers, service workers) and patrons — they would no longer be exposed to indoor smoking.
  • Casino and simulcasting facility operators — required to implement and enforce a smoke‑free workplace policy; possible operational and facility compliance costs.
  • Local boards of health and enforcement agencies — responsible for enforcement under the Smoke‑Free Air Act framework.
  • Cigar bars/lounges and tobacco retail establishments that qualify under existing exemptions — generally not affected by this change.

Enforcement and compliance

  • Enforcement mechanisms are those already established under the New Jersey Smoke‑Free Air Act (local health officials and applicable penalties under current law). The bill does not, in the provided text, add new enforcement procedures specific to casinos.

Expected impacts

  • Health: Reduced secondhand smoke exposure for workers and patrons; potential reductions in smoking‑related occupational morbidity.
  • Economic/operational: Casinos may face changes in patron behavior, costs for transition to smoke‑free operations, or potential revenue impacts; also potential benefits from reduced employee sick time and liability exposure.
  • Legal/regulatory: Aligns casino workplaces with the broader statewide indoor smoking ban by removing a longstanding exception.

Legislative history highlights (from supplied record)

  • Introduced in New Jersey Senate and referred to Health Committee (1/9/2024); reported with amendments by committee (1/29/2024).
  • Committee amendment adjusted effective date to 90 days after enactment.
  • Additional entries in the supplied history appear to include actions or bills from other jurisdictions and should be verified against official state legislative records for final status and chamber-specific actions.

If you want, I can:
- Verify the current official status in the New Jersey Legislature,
- Produce a side‑by‑side comparison of the existing text and the proposed amended text, or
- Draft a short explainer for casino employers on compliance steps and timelines.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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