During Thursday’s meeting of the Altus City Council the Emergency Ordinance 2010-06 regarding adoption of state laws from the Smoking in Public Places and Indoor Workplaces Act, Smoking in Certain Public Areas Prohibited and Prevention of Youth Access to Tobacco Act, using guidelines from the Oklahoma Municipal League was approved.

This is an Emergency Ordinance and an effective date was set at 30 days from this date. The Tobacco-Free Parks issue is still up for consideration. According to City Attorney Catherine Coke, Representative Charles Ortega has requested a ruling from the Attorney General on this issue.

The state already has a law about not smoking in buildings. Are parks included in that law? Johnson assured members of the audience that "This council is actively pursuing Tobacco-Free Parks." Coke echoed the sentiment when asked how long this process could take. It could be up to three months, but she quipped, "He is running for Governor. He'll want to speed this along."

The council also approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and the Jackson County District Court. This adds a curfew and tobacco possession to the list of offenses for juveniles.