Senate Bill No. 103
(By Senators Rowe, Caldwell and Jenkins )
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[Introduced January 14, 2004; referred to the Committee on
Education; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §16-9A-4 of the code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to creating the "Tobacco Free
School Act"; prohibiting possession and use of tobacco
products in all school buildings and grounds; eliminating
exemption from tobacco restrictions for areas not used for
instructional purposes; increasing penalties for violations;
authorizing state board of education to further restrict
tobacco use; and permitting law-enforcement officers to issue
warnings in lieu of citations for violations.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §16-9A-4
of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 9A. TOBACCO USAGE RESTRICTIONS.
§16-9A-4. Use of tobacco or tobacco products in schools and school
grounds prohibited; penalty.
(a) Every Any person who shall smoke smokes a cigarette or
cigarettes, pipe, cigar or other implement, of any type or nature,
designed, used or employed for smoking any tobacco or tobacco
product or who shall use uses any tobacco product, whether chewing
tobacco, snuff or otherwise, in any building or part thereof used
for instructional purposes, in any school a school building or
school structure or on the grounds of any school of this state, as
defined in section one, article one, chapter eighteen of this code,
or on any lot or grounds actually used for instructional purposes
of any such school of this state while such school is used or
occupied for school purposes, shall be is guilty of a misdemeanor
and, upon conviction, thereof shall be punished for each offense by
a fine of not less than one fifty nor more than five two hundred
fifty dollars: Provided, That this prohibition shall not be
construed to prevent the use of any tobacco or tobacco product in
any faculty lounge or staff lounge or faculty office or other area
of said public school not used for instructional purposes:
Provided, however, That students do not have access thereto:
Provided further, That nothing a law-enforcement officer may issue
a warning in lieu of a citation for any offense under this section.
Nothing herein contained shall may be construed to prevent the
state board or any county board of education from promulgating
rules and regulations that further restrict the use of tobacco or
tobacco products, in any form, from any other part or section of any public school building property
under its ownership, control or
jurisdiction.
(b) This section shall be known as the "Tobacco Free School
Act."
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to prohibit tobacco use in
all school buildings and grounds and to increase the penalties
therefor.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.