WICHITA — The Wichita City Council will wait to see the outcome of a court challenge to the new statewide smoking ban before reconsidering changes to the city’s smoking ordinance.
The council had been scheduled to vote Tuesday on updating the city’s smoking ordinance to bring it in line with the new state law restricting smoking in public places and job sites.
But council members Friday afternoon ordered that item pulled from next week’s meeting agenda pending outcome of the court case.
The new state law went into effect July 1. But in late June, a Sedgwick County judge issued a temporary restraining order against enforcing the state ban in the city until a trial could take place to determine if the city’s ordinance was stricter than the new state law.
A trial has been scheduled in Sedgwick County District Court for 9 a.m. Aug. 30.
The Kansas Constitution provides broad “home rule” powers to cities and that has generally been interpreted to mean that while cities cannot ignore state law they can enact ordinances deemed more restrictive than state laws.
Meanwhile, the city’s legal department had independently concluded that the city’s anti-smoking ordinance is less restrictive than the new state law and needed repeal or revision. The city has not joined in the legal challenge to the state law.
“The city cannot maintain its existing local ordinances, because they would conflict with state law requirements,” city lawyers wrote in a memo to the city council and Mayor Carl Brewer. “Accordingly, the city’s options include repealing all local smoking regulations, adopting regulations that parallel the new state laws, or adopting local regulations that are stricter than the new state laws.”
Wichita’s smoking ordinance, approved in 2008, allows businesses that prohibit minors to purchase a $250 permit for indoor smoking. About 200 businesses had purchased a permit as of last month.
The new state law wouldn’t allow permits for selective indoor smoking. It provides for only a few exemptions, including tobacco shops and private clubs that notify the Kansas Department of Health and Environment that they wish to continue to allow their customers to smoke.
The proposed new city ordinance that had been scheduled for consideration next week would bring the city ordinance into conformance with the state law and remove the city’s office of central inspection as the enforcement agent.
The proposed replacement ordinance also would allow businesses that had purchased smoking permits to be eligible for a partial refund.
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