Photo Credit: Blake Aued

A campus-wide smoking ban took effect on the University of Georgia campus today. (Yes, that means no chewing or vaping, either.)

The Board of Regents approved the no-smoking policy in March. It applies to every public college and university in the state.

Here's a Mar. 26 article by Flagpole intern David Schick on the ban that notes how difficult it will be to enforce the ban.

“There are 'no smoking' signs all over the benches here, and people still smoke out here,” says Molly Cutts, 22, an advertising major standing outside the Miller Learning Center. “I don’t think people are going to go all the way downtown to smoke, and if you’re in the MLC during finals and it’s open 24 hours, of course you’re going to go out and get a cigarette.” 

But UGA police have no plans to actively enforce it.

“The policy was not created to be a police issue. We’re not going to have any special smoking police or tobacco police out there looking for things,” [Chief Jimmy Williamson] says.

UGA President Jere Morehead reiterated last week that he doesn't consider this a law enforcement issue. But he hopes students and visitors will respect the policy, he said.