No smoking
Beginning Saturday, no smoking, no chewing - no tobacco use of any kind - will be legal on any public-school property.
Period.
That means inside buildings, near doorways, in parking lots, by football fields, on lawns.
It covers every adult - parents, visitors, teachers, delivery drivers, principals - and, naturally, every student.
It means 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
"The old law allowed schools to designate a smoking area on campus. We don't. We never have," Whitefish Superintendent Jerry House said.
"But the new act lays it right out there," he said of its no-compromise stance.
If House or his fellow educators see violators, "we'll use politeness, we'll be respectful," he said, but they will ask the smokers and chewers to stop. "Some people just don't know (about the law). Our job is not to hammer them."
Saturday, Oct. 1, is the day Montana's statewide ban on smoking in public places and work places takes effect.
Tim Dowell, Kalispell's Democratic state representative and Smith Valley middle school teacher, introduced and sponsored House Bill 643, the Montana Clean Indoor Air Act of 2005. Dowell dubbed it the Big Sky Clean Air Act.
With its passage and the governor's signature in April, Montana became the 10th state in the nation to institute an all-out smoking ban.
"Kids can't (always) control their situations. All we're doing is providing kids protections," Dowell said.
"This will educate kids that government actually can help them," he said. "We're in a situation where we can get some things done that are beneficial not only to adults, but to them also."
There are two specific exemptions from the school tobacco ban:
- When it is part of a teacher- or administration-sanctioned lesson on the risks of tobacco use.
-When it is used in an American Indian cultural activity, in accordance with the American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978.
Other than those exceptions, plan on leaving your tobacco at home.
Some examples of what Montana's tobacco-free schools initiative means for people who work at or visit schools:
-Administrators no longer can set aside faculty smoking areas, or let adults smoke in the parking lot or athletic fields.
-Coaches can't chew tobacco during summer football practice.
-Groundskeepers can't use tobacco while mowing lawns or plowing snow.
-Community groups using school buildings or property must make sure none of its attendees uses tobacco anywhere on school property.
In a twist on the last item, the smoking ban will be enforced during athletic events Whitefish holds at Memorial Field. Although the school only leases the stadium, rule-making by the Department of Public Health and Human Services means the field will be treated as school property at those times.
A key purpose of the tobacco-free schools initiative is to eliminate school-by-school exemptions and put everyone on the same legal footing.
Although non-student adults can't be prevented from possessing tobacco, they cannot use it. That means school officials, community groups and anyone else using school property needs to have a plan in place to monitor compliance.
Bigfork Superintendent Russ Kinzer, much like House in Whitefish, said the school is relying on strategically posted signs, public announcements and gentle verbal reminders to encourage compliance.
Bigfork's signs will go up in key places, such as the high-school foyer, elementary gym and football-field entrance.
"We really haven't had too many adults smoking in the past. We'll find a cigarette butt now and then," Kinzer said.
He will get the word out to staff via e-mails, he said.
"And we'll ask the sheriff's posse members to help us at activities like football games, ask them to just remind people that there's a new law," Kinzer said. "We're not going to handcuff and haul them away."
Not only is it a law that must be followed, he said, it's a good idea.
"This will just maintain a consistency as to tobacco standards on campus," he said, "Students have (a ban) now, adults don't. There's been a double standard there, and this will just maintain consistency."
Dowell's take on his relationship to his students fits into the overall school ethic.
"One of the jobs we as educators have is to be a role model," he said.
"We're role models," House agreed. "We must be in compliance."
Reporter Nancy Kimball can be reached at 758-4483 or by e-mail at nkimball@dailyinterlake.com.