August 30, 2022 Charlie Minato Regulations,  Smoking Bans

St. Petersburg, Fla. Moves Towards Beach Smoking Ban

St. Petersburg, Fla. is likely to ban all smoking on the city’s beaches.

Last week, the St. Petersburg City Council unanimously approved a draft ordinance that would ban nearly all smoking at all public beaches. Those caught in violation of the ordinance could be fined between $93-500.

Smoking cigars on the beach will likely remain legal. In June, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed HB 105 into law, a bill that allowed Florida municipalities to enact their own smoking laws, something that was previously preempted by state law. HB 105 contained an exception for unfiltered cigars which do not contain plastic, meaning it’s unlikely St. Petersburg’s proposed law could ban smoking premium cigars.

Next month, the St. Petersburg City Council will vote to approve the final ordinance. If approved, enforcement will begin on Jan. 1, 2023.

Overall Score

Florida Pinellas County (Fla.) Smoking Bans St. Petersburg (Fla.)
Avatar photo

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. I previously co-founded and published TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry for more than a decade, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. In addition, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff here at halfwheel. I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.

Related Posts