MEBANE, NC -- There's a new non-smoking ordinance in the city of Mebane. Earlier this week, the city council revised its policy and banned smoking on city property and in the downtown district.
The policy bans smoking, e-cigarettes, and the use of other tobacco products in the downtown business area, city parks, city owned properties, facilities and vehicles.
The previous policy banned smoking in city vehicles and facilities but didn't include e-cigarettes, or the new geographic areas.
City council did not have have a public hearing on the issue. but the city attorney said it wasn't required. He said state law only requires public hearings on issues dealing with land.
In this case, he says a member of the public asked a council member to look into the issue. The council asked the city attorney to do the research, he made the recommendations, and they passed the changes.
We reached out to the council to see what the process might be if someone wanted the city council to change the ordinance. They said people should reach out to their council members to bring it up for discussion.
