Tobacco's Out, but Pot's OK in San Francisco Smoking Ban

San Francisco is looking to outlaw smoking tobacco in public places — but the famously liberal city won't extend the ban to marijuana.

New legislation would prohibit smoking anything other than medically-prescribed marijuana at street fairs, festivals and other outdoor events held on city property, KCBS of San Francisco reported. The city’s board of supervisors is weighing the new rule.

New York City banned smoking in most public places last year. The law made smoking illegal in the Big Apple's 1,700 parks, on 14 miles of public beaches and in pedestrian plazas such as Times Square.

San Francisco, like nearby San Jose, already restricts smoking in outdoor seating areas of cafes and restaurants, as well as near building entrances and vents.

San Francisco Supervisor Eric Mar introduced the proposal because of the health impacts of secondhand smoke when people light up in public.

“It’s widely known that secondhand smoke is responsible for as many as 73,000 deaths among non-smokers each year in the United States, and there is no safe level of exposure,” he told the CBS affiliate.

 “It’s carefully crafted also to exclude smaller neighborhood organized events such as block parties. And also, importantly, it does not prohibit the use of medical cannabis,” Mar added.