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• Buono Bill Would Ban Smoking In Public Parks And Beaches 

Citing studies that document the health risks to non-smokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke, as well as environmental concerns, Sen. Barbara Buono (D-Middlesex) said today she is introducing a bill to ban smoking at all state, county and municipal parks and beaches.

“While cigarette smoking has declined dramatically since the first Surgeon General’s report more than 40 years ago, tobacco continues to take a deadly toll,” Sen. Buono said. “A report on tobacco use in America by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies found that among the 440,000 annual deaths caused by tobacco are 50,000 non-smokers killed by the smoking of others.”

Sen. Buono, chairwoman of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, said the IM report points out smoking kills more people each year than AIDS, alcohol use, cocaine use, heroin use, homicides, suicides, motor vehicle accidents and fires, combined.

An avid runner, Senator Buono has drawn from her personal experiences running in public parks, prompting this legislation. "This issue has been on my agenda for a long time,” Sen. Buono said. “Now we have empirical data which support the passage of this public health and environmental protection measure.”

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