Nevada's new anti-smoking law is unconstitutional because it doesn't specify who should be cited if someone illegally lights up, opponents of the law wrote in a supplemental brief filed Monday in District Court.
The vagueness of the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act, which was passed by voters as Question 5, would mean "arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement," the brief says.
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"The lack of enforcement provisions in the Act means that any tavern employee down to the cocktail waitress or the busboy, if he or she is somehow deemed complicit in not preventing smoking, can be snared in a standardless sweep," the document says.
The Southern Nevada Health District's guidelines for complying with the law were also vague, the brief said.
The brief was filed by lawyer Kirk Lenhard, who is representing 20 local bars and taverns who oppose the smoking restrictions.
The law bans smoking in restaurants and bars that serve food. Smoking remains legal in stand-alone bars, casinos and other businesses with unrestricted gaming licenses. The law was set to take effect last Friday, but a group of business owners filed a lawsuit, calling the law unconstitutional.
District Judge Douglas Herndon on Thursday issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting Clark County officials from enforcing the anti-smoking law. A hearing was scheduled for Dec. 19
The defendants' supplemental briefs are due by 5 p.m. Thursday.
