Albuquerque, NM Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)

The Albuquerque Clean Indoor Air Ordinance, codified at Revised Ordinances of Albuquerque §§ 9-5-5-1 through 9-5-5-9, extends beyond enclosed buildings. Section 9-5-5-4 makes it unlawful to smoke in any indoor workplace or indoor public place, in buses, taxicabs or other public transit, and adds two outdoor reaches: the entire grounds of the Albuquerque Biological Park (Rio Grande Zoo, Aquarium and Botanical Garden), and any public transit boarding area sited in a street median or other partially-sheltered outdoor waiting area. The ordinance's ENCLOSED definition sweeps some outdoor spaces in too: any interior space 'predominantly or totally bounded on all sides and above by physical barriers' counts as enclosed even with open or screened windows, so a walled, roofed restaurant patio can qualify as an indoor public place subject to the ban.

Section 9-5-5-6 requires the owner or manager of any smoke-free premises to keep smoke a reasonable distance from entrances, windows and ventilation systems. Where outdoor smoking is allowed, § 9-5-5-3 requires the space to be a DESIGNATED OUTDOOR SMOKING AREA kept away from any building entrance, door, window or ventilation system, and the public must never be forced to walk through it to reach an indoor space. Section 9-5-5-7 obligates every employer to adopt, post and enforce a written smoking policy, and § 9-5-5-8 requires conspicuous 'NO SMOKING' signage at every public entrance of a smoke-free workplace.

The 2022 cannabis amendment (Am. Ord. 2022-16) folds cannabis smoke into the same rules, and under § 9-5-5-4(D) a law enforcement officer, first responder, or city, county, state, tribal or utility employee conducting official business at a licensed cannabis consumption area can order smoking to stop on the spot.