Can You Smoke Cigars in Public Under State and Federal Law

Adults can legally smoke cigars outdoors in general public areas where local law does not prohibit it. Indoors, 28 states plus the District of Columbia (DC) make bars, restaurants and worksites smoke-free. Federal rules target specific settings like commercial flights, executive branch offices, and public housing.

The CDC monitors these statutes through its STATE System Smokefree Indoor Air fact sheet. As of June 30, 2024, the CDC counts 28 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, the Marshall Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands with comprehensive laws that require bars, restaurants, and worksites to remain 100% smoke-free.

The 28 states with comprehensive indoor bans are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. In these states, enclosed commercial dining and drinking spaces cannot allow cigar smoking unless the business meets a statutory exemption.

States without comprehensive statewide bans include Florida, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Nevada. That does not mean smoking is permitted everywhere in those states. Florida and Pennsylvania enforce state workplace smoking acts with designated exemptions, while Texas has no statewide 100% smoke-free indoor law on the CDC list. The CDC notes that its STATE System data covers only state statutes, meaning local city codes can impose stricter outdoor and indoor bans.

Federal, state, and local governments divide public spaces into regulated categories with distinct rules.

Setting	Common Legal Rule	Authorizing Source
Commercial Airplanes	Prohibited on scheduled flights and flights with flight attendants	Title 49 of the United States Code (49 U.S.C. 41706) and Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR 252.4)
Federal Office Buildings	Prohibited indoors, in courtyards, and within 25 feet of entrances and air intake ducts	41 CFR 102-71.90 through 102-71.115 (General Services Administration (GSA) final rule)
Public Housing Grounds	Prohibited indoors and outdoors within 25 feet of buildings	24 CFR 965.653 (Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rule)
National Parks	Prohibited indoors, inside caves, and within 25 feet of public entrances	36 CFR 2.21 and National Park Service (NPS) Director's Order #50D
Indoor Restaurants and Bars	Prohibited across 28 states, DC, and several territories	CDC STATE System Smokefree Indoor Air tracking data
Stand-Alone Bars	Permitted in Florida when alcohol service predominates and food is incidental	Florida Statutes Section 386.2045
Grandfathered Cigar Lounges	Permitted with state registration and historical revenue proof	New York Public Health Law 1399-q and New Jersey Department of Health
Personal Vehicles with Minors	Prohibited in 12 states when passengers are below specified ages	CDC STATE System Vehicles fact sheet

Executive Order 13058, issued August 9, 1997, banned smoking in all interior space owned, rented or leased by the federal executive branch. The order exempted federal residential accommodations, private-sector workplaces staffed by federal employees, and federal spaces leased entirely to non-federal entities.

A General Services Administration (GSA) final rule took effect on December 16, 2025, updating the Federal Management Regulation under 41 CFR 102-71.90 through 102-71.115. Under the GSA final rule in the Federal Register, tobacco use is banned in all executive-branch interior space. On outdoor space GSA controls, it is also banned in courtyards and within 25 feet of doorways and air intake ducts.

Under federal statute 49 U.S.C. 41706, smoking is illegal on scheduled passenger airline flights in interstate and intrastate transportation, as well as on nonscheduled passenger flights whenever a flight attendant is a required crewmember. The Department of Transportation (DOT) mirrors this ban in its regulations at 14 CFR 252.4. The DOT exception applies only to single-entity charter flights and on-demand air taxis where no flight attendant is required.

Housing properties operated by local public housing agencies enforce a federal perimeter rule. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) codified smoke-free rules under 24 CFR 965.653. This regulation mandates that public housing authorities ban all burning tobacco leaf products, expressly naming cigars, cigarettes, pipes, and waterpipe hookahs. The ban covers all living units, administrative offices, interior common spaces, and outdoor areas within 25 feet of housing and office structures.

Under that same HUD regulation, housing authorities can establish outdoor smoking areas beyond the 25-foot line or declare their entire property grounds smoke-free. All housing agencies were required to comply with this policy by July 30, 2018, as set forth in 24 CFR 965.655.

State clean indoor air laws generally create specific commercial carve-outs for retail tobacconists and licensed cigar bars. If you are learning how to smoke a cigar or want a dedicated environment, these licensed venues provide an indoor option.

In Florida, the Clean Indoor Air Act defines smoking in Florida Statutes Section 386.203 as inhaling, exhaling, burning, carrying, or possessing any lighted tobacco product, expressly including cigars. The general statute prohibits smoking in enclosed indoor workplaces. However, Florida Statutes Section 386.2045 creates clear exceptions for retail tobacco shops, stand-alone bars, designated smoking guest rooms in hotels, and private residences not used commercially for care.

Florida defines a retail tobacco shop as an enclosed workplace dedicated predominantly to the sale of tobacco products and related accessories, where incidental non-tobacco sales remain minimal. Florida defines a stand-alone bar as licensed premises devoted mainly to serving alcohol, where food is merely incidental. The bar cannot share an entryway or common indoor area with another enclosed workplace.

Under New York Public Health Law Section 1399-n, smoking covers burning any lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe, tobacco product, or cannabis product. General restrictions apply to indoor public areas, but New York Public Health Law Section 1399-q lists narrow exceptions. Retail tobacco businesses and private passenger automobiles are excluded from indoor bans.

New York's cigar-bar exemption is grandfathered. A New York cigar bar qualifies only if it earned 10 percent or more of its 2002 gross income from on-site tobacco sales and humidor rentals. The venue must remain registered with the state, and it cannot have moved or expanded its physical footprint since December 31, 2002. New York does permit smoking in a designated section of an uncovered outdoor dining area. That section is capped at 25 percent of outdoor seating, sits at least three feet from non-smoking seats, and is marked with signs.

Pennsylvania enacted the Clean Indoor Air Act as Act 27 of 2008, prohibiting smoking in public places and workplaces. The Pennsylvania Department of Health lists exceptions for two types of cigar bars, two types of drinking establishments, and tobacco shops. Establishments seeking these exceptions must submit applications and obtain written approval from the Department of Health.

In New Jersey, the Smoke-Free Air Act maintains carve-outs for cigar businesses. Under New Jersey Department of Health guidance, registered cigar bars and lounges that earned 15 percent or more of 2004 gross income from tobacco sales may allow indoor smoking. Tobacco retail establishments whose primary activity (51 percent) is selling tobacco are also exempt. The act also allows smoking in casino gaming areas and in up to 20 percent of hotel guest rooms. For travelers visiting casino properties, our guide on whether you can smoke cigars in Las Vegas casinos covers gaming-floor policies in Nevada.

Smoking inside a private vehicle is generally legal under state law, but 12 states ban it when children ride with you.

The CDC's STATE System Vehicles fact sheet counts 12 states, as of June 30, 2024, that ban smoking in personal vehicles when children or adolescents are passengers. These jurisdictions are Alabama, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia. Three territories enforce comparable vehicle restrictions: Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico.

Age limits vary considerably across these jurisdictions. As reported by the CDC, vehicle smoking bans apply when carrying passengers who are:

• 8 years of age and younger in Vermont
• 13 years of age and younger in Louisiana
• 14 years of age and younger in Alabama and Arkansas
• 15 years of age and younger in Utah and Virginia
• 16 years of age and younger in Delaware and West Virginia
• 18 years of age and younger in California, Illinois, Maine, and Oregon

We also cover smoking rules in our cigarette smoking FAQ. Some state smoking laws explicitly exempt personal vehicles within their indoor air legislation. The CDC notes that Colorado, Delaware, Indiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia carry statutes that specifically exempt private vehicles from statewide smoking prohibitions. Delaware appears on both CDC lists, so its ban with children 16 and younger in the car still applies. New York Public Health Law Section 1399-q likewise excludes private automobiles from its Clean Indoor Air Act rules.

National park superintendents can close any park area to smoking under 36 CFR 2.21. Beaches and city parks follow local rules, which vary by city.

National park areas are run by the National Park Service (NPS). Under federal regulation 36 CFR 2.21, an individual park superintendent has the authority to close all or any portion of a park area, building, or facility to smoking. Superintendents implement closures to protect natural resources, minimize fire risks, or reduce visitor conflicts. Once a superintendent issues a closure, smoking in a designated area is prohibited. The same regulation permanently bans smoking inside all national park caves and caverns.

Administrative procedures for the park service appear in NPS Director's Order #50D, issued in its 2009 edition. The order defines smoking as carrying or using any lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe, or other tobacco product. Director's Order #50D bans smoking inside all buildings the NPS owns, leases or administers, and in government vehicles. It also bans smoking within 25 feet of any entrance or exit used mainly by the visiting public. Outside those designated 25-foot building zones, the order lists public parking lots and outdoor sidewalks as locations where smoking is generally permitted.

Before you pack a cutter for the coast, read our guide on whether you can smoke cigars on the beach. Our list of the best cigars for the beach covers what to bring. If your travel plans include maritime trips, read our breakdown of whether you can smoke cigars on a cruise.

Outdoors, you can usually light up unless a local rule or posted sign says no. Indoors, bars, restaurants and worksites are smoke-free in 28 states and DC, with exemptions for some cigar bars and tobacco shops.

In the 12 states on the CDC vehicle list, smoking in the car is illegal when a child under that state's age limit is riding with you.

Our verdict would change if a state legislature amended its clean indoor air act or if a municipality passed an ordinance expanding park smoking bans. Before you light up in a new state, find it on the CDC smoke-free indoor air list, then follow any posted no-smoking sign.