Leander, TX Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)

02 of the Code of Ordinances, prohibits smoking in all enclosed public places in the Williamson County city: elevators, restrooms, lobbies, retail stores, restaurants (outside a separately ventilated bar area), offices, banks, hotel and motel common areas, theaters, sports arenas, health facilities, apartment building common areas, polling places and city-owned buildings and vehicles. Employers must adopt a written smoke-free workplace policy within 90 days of the article's effective date, covering all enclosed work areas including private offices and company vehicles, and must supply that policy in writing to any employee or applicant on request.

Outdoors, Sec. 006 sets the buffer that gives this rule its bite: smoking must occur "a reasonable distance of 20 feet or more outside the entrance" of any building where smoking is banned, so smoke doesn't reenter through doors, windows or vents. Sec. 007 carves out limited exemptions from the indoor and outdoor rules: freestanding, fully enclosed bars; private residences (except those used for licensed child care, adult day care or health care); up to 50 percent of hotel and motel guest rooms; retail tobacco stores; and outdoor areas of workplaces not otherwise covered.

Any owner or manager may still voluntarily declare an exempt establishment nonsmoking. "No Smoking" signs and the international no-smoking symbol must be posted at every prohibited-area entrance, and ashtrays must be removed from banned areas. The city manager or a designee enforces the article, the health or fire department may inspect for compliance during other mandated inspections, and citizens register complaints directly with the city manager's office. Retaliation against an employee, applicant or customer for asserting smoke-free rights is separately prohibited, and no one is required to personally report a violation to be protected.