Tenants' Rights
Understanding your legal rights - and the legal rights of people
who smoke - is the first step in making smoking-related changes to the
apartment building where you live. Here are some important things you
should know:
- Smoke-free apartment policies are permitted under federal and Maine law.
- It is important to note that people who smoke are not a protected legal class, i.e., there is no "right to smoke" under law.
- Landlords and apartment managers can (and often do) make their entire building(s) smoke-free. Some choose to apply the policy to portions of the building, or if there is more than one building, to some buildings and not to others. Usually they also apply smoke-free policies in specific areas other than living units, such as laundry rooms, recreation rooms, or areas where children play.
- Common areas of any building into which the public is invited or allowed must be smoke-free under Maine's public places smoking law.
- Non-smokers with serious breathing disabilities or smoke allergies have legal protection under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the federal Fair Housing Act, and the Maine Human Rights Act. If secondhand smoke seriously affects your ability to breathe, consult a doctor to have your condition documented.
- Although they are not required to do so, some landlords choose to allow existing tenants to continue smoking as long as they live there, with the smoke-free policy taking effect in that unit when a new tenant moves in. Another option is to allow existing tenants who smoke to continue smoking until the smoking policy can be legally changed under the terms of the lease/rental agreement (usually at the time of renewal).