§ 16-101. Findings and purpose.

(a)

The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners does hereby find that:

(1)

Numerous studies have found that tobacco smoke is a major contributor to indoor air pollution, and that breathing secondhand smoke is a cause of disease in healthy non-smokers, including heart disease, stroke, respiratory disease, and lung cancer.

(2)

Secondhand smoke is particularly hazardous to elderly people, individuals with cardiovascular disease, and individuals with impaired respiratory function, including asthmatics and those with obstructive disease. Children exposed to secondhand smoke have an increased risk of asthma, respiratory infections, sudden infant death syndrome, developmental abnormalities, and cancer.

(b)

Accordingly, the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners finds and declares that the purposes of this division are:

(1)

To protect the public health and welfare by prohibiting smoking in public places and public and private places of employment; and

(2)

To guarantee the right of non-smokers to breathe smoke-free air; and

(3)

To recognize that the need to breathe smoke-free air shall have priority over the desire to smoke.

(Ord. No. 41-02, Pt. I, 12-19-02)