Mayor Bill de Blasio said he will sign a bill to ban smokeless tobacco from sports arenas and stadiums within the next two weeks.
The mayor called into ESPN Sunday to talk about the City Council’s legislation that passed last week with a 44-3 vote. De Blasio agreed with the bill’s supporters’ contention that the ban would promote healthy lifestyle choices for athletes and fans alike.
“Young people look up to baseball players and they look up to all athletes and we want to protect everyone’s health,” he said.
De Blasio said violators would be fined.
“Given the money [players] make, the fines may not be a big deal … but it will show we are serious. It will be a wake-up call,” he said.
Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago and other cities have enacted similar laws. The mayor noted that the ban on smoking in parks and restaurants has drastically reduced smoking rates in New York.
