Highlands County, FL Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)

Highlands County's park-conduct ordinance, section 7-4, includes a flat prohibition on tobacco and vapor use. Subsection (j) states plainly: no person or entity may smoke, use cigarettes, or vape or use vaping products, as those products are defined in Florida Statutes chapter 386, inside a county park. Unlike several other subsections of section 7-4, the smoking and vaping ban carries no exceptions for designated smoking areas or private events, and it applies throughout the park, not just near playgrounds or buildings. A "county park" under the section's own definitions is any land owned, leased or maintained by Highlands County, or by a municipal service benefit unit the county created, that the Board of County Commissioners has designated as a public park.

That sweeps in county-run boat ramps, ballfields, and beach access points, in addition to conventional parks. The subsection sits alongside other absolute prohibitions in section 7-4, including a ban on possessing or consuming alcoholic beverages in subsection (b) and a ban on discharging fireworks or explosives without a Board of County Commissioners permit in subsection (c), showing the county treats park conduct rules as strict, not discretionary. 00, imprisonment in the county jail for up to 60 days, or both. Park personnel and law enforcement officers are authorized under the section to eject a person for a violation on the spot, in addition to any criminal citation.