Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Pennsylvania County's No-Smoking Law Impacts Churches

Last Friday's Pittsburgh Catholic reported on a memo sent by the Office for Legal Services of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh on Allegheny County, Pennsylvania's new no-smoking ordinance. The memo attempted to clarify when the no-smoking ban applies to church properties. It applies to parish offices, but not to priests' living quarters. There is an exemption for fund-raising events on parish premises if only unpaid volunteers are used to run the event and if no one under 18 years old is admitted to the premises during the event.