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Vegas Casinos, Others Ignoring Nevada Smoking Ban
As the legal status of Nevada's statewide smoking ban remains up in the air, casinos and other businesses in the Las Vegas area are continuing to allow indoor smoking, the Associated Press reported Jan. 5.
Compliance with the law, which went into effect Dec. 8, is high in northern Nevada but poor in the Las Vegas area, observers say. A legal challenge to the law, filed by bar owners, is still pending and has resulted in a judge ruling that the measure can only be enforced by civil authorities, not police, and that fines cannot exceed $100.
Voters approved the ban in November by a margin of 54 percent to 46 percent.
Casino and business owners in Las Vegas said they are awaiting a judge's final order on the law before enforcing the ban, which covers smoking in most indoor public spaces, but not casino gaming areas.
"Quite frankly it's been confusing as to when the ban applied, who it applied to, whether it just applied in Clark County," said MGM Mirage spokesman Alan Feldman. "When there's a change in law you usually look to the enforcement agencies for guidance. But both the Health District and (police) have been hard pressed to be clear about what the rules are. It would only add to the confusion to implement a ruling and then to read the ruling and find out things have changed."