A new smoking ban in the state of Maine has re-ignited the debate over where you can smoke.
Earlier this month, the city of Bangor banned smoking in cars in which children under 18 are passengers.
The Bangor ordinance permits police in the Maine's third largest city to stop a car if an adult is smoking while a child is a passenger. Violators face fines up to US$50.
The ban is being hailed as a new frontier for anti-smoking groups who believe taking a drag may one day be banned in Canada too.
But the ordinance also had its critics. Bangor city councilor Susan Hawes, who voted against the law, told The Associated Press that the police department should focus its attention on more important issues.
There's already too much government intervention in people's lives, she said.
"Some of the negatives that have been brought forward to me is, well you're treading on civil liberties. You're being real heavy handed," said Bangor's Mayor Richard Greene.
Similar statewide measures have already been adopted in the states of Arkansas and Louisiana.
In Connecticut, a ban on smoking in cars just introduced in the legislature was prompted by a nine-year-old who started a petition.
"If you can't talk on a cellphone or eat, while driving a vehicle -- how come you can still smoke?" said Justin Kvadas of East Hartford.
The American Surgeon General and Health Canada have long warned about the dangers of second-hand smoke, particularly to children.
"Children have no control over their environment. They have no choice about what they breathe," said Dr. Ted Boadway of the Ontario Medical Association.
Three years ago, the association said passive smoke was 23 times more toxic in a car compared to a home.
But the association failed to secure a ban, even though one poll in the province found 78 per cent of residents would support one.
"It's an evolution. A while ago, we accepted surgeons smoking in hospitals and smoking on airplanes. Now it seems crazy to of that kind of thing. It's just an evolution," said Pippa Beck of the Non-Smokers Rights Association.
With a report from CTV's John Vennavally-Rao
