Smoking Now Allowed in House Side of Congress

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives are once again able to smoke in their offices on the House side of the Capitol. With the new Republican majority in the House, there is a new chairman of the House’s Committee on Rules. That person is Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., a noted cigar lover.

Tom Cole, the new chairman of Rules was about the cigar smoke outside his office.

“I’m not giving up cigars”

Asked if that includes the office in the Capitol, he nodded yes. https://t.co/1JuTqvgZ6E

— Chris Cioffi (@ReporterCioffi) January 11, 2023

While smoking is banned in most buildings in Washington, D.C., the Capitol building is not subject to those rules. Instead, members of Congress get to pass rules for themselves. For the House of Representatives, those rules are the responsibility of the Rules Committee.

Separately, the entire east side of the House wing smells like cigars.

— Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) January 4, 2023

Since the new Congress was sworn in, there have been multiple reports of smoking, specifically cigar smoking. The new rules are said to once again allow members to smoke in their offices, as well as in committee rooms. A Jan. 9 announcement from the Speaker Pro Tempore suggests that smoking is not allowed on the floor of the chamber, but it’s likely that members are permitted to smoke in most other places of the House building.