The Nation : New York City Adopts Smoking Rules

Broad restrictions on smoking in public places in New York City were signed into law, leaving businesses with 90 days to meet the new rules or face fines of up to $500. “This is the single most important piece of health legislation the City Council has ever enacted,” said Mayor Edward I. Koch in signing the bill at a City Hall ceremony. The law, enacted after seven years of debate, bans or restricts smoking in virtually all public places except for smaller restaurants and shops, and requires businesses with more than 15 employees to provide smoke-free work areas. Supporters said it would provide a vital boost to anti-smoking initiatives nationwide. “I have for many years called smoking slow-motion suicide,” said Joseph Califano, a former secretary of health, education and welfare who helped write the city law. “This bill will prevent smoking from becoming slow-motion murder.”