The Cascade City County Health Department has launched a public awareness campaign about the new prohibition of vaping in workplaces and indoor public spaces.

The Legislature approved Senate Bill 390 earlier this year, which expanded the Montana Clean Indoor Air Act to include e-cigarettes.

“This critical legislation closes a gap in the 20-year-old law, ensuring Montanans will be protected from exposure to e-cigarette aerosol in indoor public places and workplaces,” according to CCHD.

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The bill was signed by Gov. Gianforte on May 8 and became effective immediately.

The law prohibits smoking or vaping nicotine, marijuana, or any other substance in workplaces or indoor public places in Montana,  recognizing “the fundamental right of nonsmokers to breathe smoke-free air and establishes that the need for clean air takes precedence over the desire to smoke,” according to CCHD.

The Montana Clean Indoor Air Act requires that signs be posted in enclosed public places.

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Signs should be posted in a conspicuous place at all public entrances to the establishment stating, in a manner that can be easily read and understood, that smoking in the enclosed public place is prohibited.

“The expansion of Montana’s Clean Indoor Air Act to include e-cigarettes not only protects the public and workers from exposure to dangerous chemicals, but it also reinforces healthy social norms for youth and young adults,” Penny Paul, CCHD’s tobacco education specialist, said in a release.

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“E-cigarette aerosol is not harmless water vapor; it contains ultrafine particles, volatile organic compounds, flavorants, cancer-causing chemicals, heavy metals, and nicotine. Studies have shown that smokefree laws that include e-cigarette products can significantly reduce youth e-cigarette use,” according to CCHD.

Report a possible violation of the Clean Indoor Air Act online here or call 406-454-5071.

Local businesses can obtain free signage through the state’s website in the online store.

Signage will be available at CCHD, the Great Falls Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Great Falls Association and Alliance for Youth.