Make your multi-unit
housing complex smoke-free!

• Interestingly, 83% of Iowan's don't smoke. Therefore, adopting a smoke-free policy will appeal to the majority of people and may attract more renters.
• The cost to refurbish a smoker's apartment is much greater than that of a nonsmoker. By making your buildings smoke-free you won't have to pay for additional cleaning to remove the cigarette smell, stains, and residue left by third-hand smoke.
• There is even a possibility your insurance costs may go down due to implementing a smoke-free policy. Contact Us for more information.
• Your risk for fires greatly decreases with a smoke-free policy. Smoking-related fires are very costly and can be deadly. Just take a look at Up In Flames: The Dangers of Smoking in Apartment Units to read more about this.

• There are over 60 known cancer causing agents in secondhand smoke, and NO level of secondhand smoke is safe.
• Every year 53,000 nonsmokers in the U.S. die from the effects of secondhand smoke. Exposure to secondhand smoke can lead to lung disease, heart disease, and cancer.
• You would be protecting the lives and working to improve the health of all your tenants by implementing a smoke-free policy. Secondhand smoke can drift into the hallways and through vents. There are serious health dangers associated to secondhand smoke exposure.
• Secondhand smoke is also very dangerous to children and often leads to ear infections, colds, asthma, pneumonia, and bronchitis. Help protect our youth!
• In 2008, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating & Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) stated that "At present, the only means of effectively eliminating health risk associated with indoor exposure is to ban smoking activity."

• Remember, a smoke-free policy isn’t discriminatory; the right to smoke is not protected under law.
• For questions about the process of adopting a policy Contact Us
• Interested in seeing if your tenants would be on board with a smoke-free policy? Use our Sample Survey (PDF) as a guide.

Are you:

• Interested in renting a smoke-free apartment? Click here to see a listing of available complexes in your area.
• A tenant interested in learning more about encouraging your complex to consider adopting a policy? Contact us for information and technical assistance.
• A community member interested in supporting this initiative? We would love your input. Contact Us for more ways to help.

In Iowa, we are working to promote living environments free of secondhand smoke exposure. Send us your input or ask us how to get involved.

Myth 1: The majority of Iowans who smoke do so in their home.

Actually many smokers don’t want smoke in their home. In fact, 77% adult Iowan said they do not allow smoking in their homes and 45% of current smokers said they do not allow smoking inside their homes. (2008 Adult Tobacco Survey)

Take a look at our Facts and Stats page to see more facts about tobacco use in Iowa.

Myth 2: Proper ventilation helps to keep secondhand smoke contained and makes it safe for others living in the building.

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), "Current heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems alone do not control secondhand smoke exposure. In fact, these systems may distribute secondhand smoke throughout a building."

Additionally, the CDC states "Even separately enclosed, separately exhausted, negative-pressure smoking rooms do not keep secondhand smoke from spilling into adjacent areas."

For more information click here.

Myth 3: It is illegal to implement a smoke-free housing policy because it violates the rights of smokers.

Smokers are not a protected class and smoking, as an activity, is not a protected right. Additionally, there are no federal or state laws that prohibit private property owners and associations from adopting a smoke-free policy. Adopting a smoke-free policy is legal and piggybacks on the Iowa Smoke Free Air Act which has been very successful. (Source: Samantha K. Graff, Tobacco Control Legal Consortium, There is No Constitutional Right to smoke: 2008)

Myth 4: There is no way to enforce a smoke-free policy.

Property owners and managers would enforce a smoke-free policy just as they do every other policy they have for the units. The majority of the time this type of policy tends to be self-enforcing. We are here to help with drafting your policy and can work with you on the violations if the policy is violated. (Source: MNSmokefreehousing.org, Adopting a Smoke-free Policy: A Guide for Minnesota Homeowners' Association)