DEPARTMENT: Health
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Jennifer Herriott, MPH
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Citywide
SUBJECT:
Proposed Changes to Chapter 36 of the City Code
SUMMARY:
An ordinance amending Chapter 36 of the City Code to expand smoke/tobacco-free areas in City parks and public plazas.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tobacco use is associated with cancer, heart disease, behavioral and learning disorders, drug use, and pregnancy complications. Tobacco use causes half a million deaths annually and has been responsible for 20.8 million premature deaths in the U.S. over the past 50 years since the first Surgeon General's report on smoking in 1964. Nationally, the current amount of health care and lost worker productivity costs each year related to tobacco use is $300 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In order to protect the health and safety of all citizens and park visitors, City of San Antonio parks and public plazas will become smoke/tobacco-free.
The SA Parks System Plan provides a foundation to guide future planning decisions impacting service delivery to the citizens of San Antonio concerning capital improvement needs, operations and recreation programs in parks. In developing the SA Parks System Plan, the Parks Department went through an extensive public engagement process and included under the draft plan's goal of parks being "Restorative" is the recommendation of smoke/tobacco-free parks. During the review of the draft plan with the general public and stakeholders, there was no opposition to the recommendation that parks be smoke/tobacco-free.
Council members received the draft SA Parks System Plan that included the smoke/tobacco-free parks recommendation in mid-December 2018 and the plan was presented to the Community Health and Equity Council C...
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