A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO AUTHORIZE CERTAIN COUNTIES TO ADOPT ORDINANCES REGULATING SMOKING IN PUBLIC PLACES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑601 is amended by adding the following new subsection to read:
"(c)	Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this section, G.S. 143‑597, or any other provision of this Article to the contrary, a county board of commissioners may enact and enforce a local ordinance, law, or rule regulating smoking in public places, the restrictions of which may exceed those established in this Article. This subsection applies only to counties with a population in excess of 695,000 according to the most recent federal decennial census."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.