The proposed rules for implementing the state's historic ban on smoking in restaurants and bars are pretty simple, and there are only two.
Staffers for the N.C. Commission for Public Health, which must ultimately approve the rules, held a hearing Thursday for public comments and questions on the rules. Only a couple procedural questions arose among the small crowd.
The first proposed rule is that cigar bars, which are exempt, must file an affadavit every quarter verifying that they meet the requirements for operating as a cigar bar. (The requirements in the law include: 60 percent of gross revenue comes from alcohol, 25 percent from cigar sales and a humidor is on the premises.)
The second proposed rule says restaurants and bars must post no smoking signs at each entrance, at a height and location easily seen. The signs (proposed template above) must be at least 24 square inches, such as a 4-inch by 6-inch sign, be legible and include three pieces of information: the Division of Public Health's toll-free complaint line, the statute number for the law and the Web site www.smokefree.nc.gov.
The law takes effect Jan. 2.
