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Council Strengthens Existings Smoking Ban; Shows Weak Support for Expanding it to Residential Units 

The City Council Tuesday took initial steps to ban smoking in the common areas of multi-unit residential buildings, but indicated it would likely not extend the ban inside the units themselves.

The hotly debated issue came as the council voted unanimously to strengthen enforcement of its most recent smoking law by making business owners liable who "knowingly or intentionally" allow patrons to smoke in outdoor dining areas. The law will require businesses to prominently post no-smoking signs in those areas.

The council also extended Santa Monica's smoking ban to all public library grounds and lowered the fines for first-time violations to $100 from $250, putting it in line with other cities that have similar smoking bans.

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