RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) - On October 5, 2020, the Rancho Cordova City Council passed an ordinance by unanimous vote to strengthen their existing smoke-free multi-unit housing policy. Prior to this expansion of the policy, smoking was prohibited in indoor common areas and multi-unit housing properties were required to disclose to rental applicants the property’s smoking policies. Now, smoking will be prohibited inside and outside all multi-unit housing properties, except for allowing clearly marked outdoor designated smoking areas no closer than 30 feet from entryways, windows, playgrounds, pools, or other communal areas. This policy change will go into effect on November 4, 2020.

This ordinance applies to any properties that share walls and/or ventilation systems, since as a duplex, or larger apartment or condominium complexes with several connected units. The adopted ordinance is a huge step for Sacramento County - according to the American Lung Association’s State of Tobacco Control 2020 California Local Grades, Rancho Cordova is now the first municipality in Sacramento County to offer smoke-free units and all the associated health protections to its residents.

Secondhand smoke is capable of easily drifting between units through windows, cracks in walls or doorways, ventilation systems, gaps around plumbing fixtures and even electrical outlet lines. Even brief and infrequent exposure to secondhand smoke is dangerous to a person’s health. Drifting secondhand smoke can cause chronic ear infections in children, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in babies, cardiovascular disease and cancer in adults, and more.

The protections offered to residents in the City of Rancho Cordova improve health equity for community members. While community members living in single family homes are almost always able to control their in-home exposure to secondhand smoke, multi-unit housing residents in apartments or condominiums may keep their own unit smoke-free but still be subjected to drifting secondhand smoke from neighbors.

Smoke-free multi-unit housing policies never preclude smokers from living on properties. Rather, the purpose is to protect the approximately 90% of Californians who are non-smokers from unwanted exposure to secondhand smoke.

Property managers in Rancho Cordova will have the opportunity to attend free workshops hosted by Breathe California Sacramento Region (BCSR) for information on the new ordinance. technical assistance in updating their lease language to reflect the new ordinance, connections to signage for designated smoking areas, cessation resources, and more. Existing lease agreements are exempt from the new provisions until the date of the existing lease expires or twelve months after the effective date of the ordinance (whichever is sooner). Interested individuals should contact Marissa Greenband, Director of Tobacco Control Programs at BCSR via email - [email protected].