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Date: 09/11/09 Revision: 10/25/11 Reviewed: 08/05/24 HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE CHAD CHRONISTER , SHERIFF STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE Number: GEN 117.04 Page: 1 of 3 SUBJECT: PROHIBITIONS ON THE USE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS I. PURPOSE : The Sheriff’s Office encourages its employees to live a healthy lifestyle. The benefits of a healthy workforce are well established, and the agency encourages practices which promote the health of its employees. In accordance with that philosophy, the use of all tobacco products and facsimiles of tobacco prod ucts is prohibited on the grounds of any Sheriff’s Office facility and in any Sheriff’s Office Vehicle. II. SCOPE : This policy applies to all Sheriff’s Office employees and visitors to Sheriff’ s Office facilities. The policy encompasses all Sheriff’s Office facilities and grounds, as well as Sheriff’s Office employees assigned to permanent duty at non -Sheriff’s Office facilities during their regular shift of duty, and all Sheriff’s Office vehicl es. III. DISCUSSION : The use of tobacco products has been p roven to cause significant health problems and even death. The use of tobacco products costs the Sheriff’s Office in the form of increased healthcare premiums and time lost to employee illness re lated to tobacco use. IV. DEFINITION : A. Tobacco Products: Any product containing tobacco or derivatives of tobacco intended to be smoked, ingested, or used orally. Tobacco products include but are not limited to cigarettes, cigars, all forms of smo keless tobacco products, and any product containing tobacco. B. Facsimile Tobacco Products: A product that may or may not contain tobacco, but resembles a tobacco product in any way, shape, or form. Examples of such products include substances which resemble smokeless tobacco, so called “E - Cigarettes,” or any facsimile of a cigarette or cigar. C. Sheriff’s Office Facility: Any facility of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, to include district stations, training facilities, community offices, agency offi ces leased or housed in commercial properties, the Sheriff’s Operations Center, and all detention facilities. D. Sheriff’s Office Vehicle: Any vehicle owned by, leased, or rented to, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. V. PROCEDURE : A. Signs shall be erected and maintained at the entrances to all Sheriff’s Office facilities notifying persons entering the facility that the use of tobacco products is prohibited. These signs shall display the announcement in both Spanish and English an d may contain universal graphics that reinforce the message. Smaller signs shall be located about the grounds in locations chosen for their prominence and visibility. GEN 117.04 10/25/11 Page 2 of 3 B. There shall be no designated smoking areas at any Sheriff’s Office facility. Smoking areas in existence at the inception of this policy shall be cleaned and converted to “clean air” break areas for use by all personnel. C. Sheriff’s Office employees who use tobacco products and wish to do so during work hours must leave the grounds of the Sheriff’s Office facility. Members are prohibited from using tobacco products in facility parking lots, inside vehicles parked in Sheriff’s Office parking lots, or in areas within the pr operty boundaries of the Sheriff’s Office facility. * D. The existing prohibition on use of tobacco products by uniformed Sheriff’s Office personne l remains in place at all times. Uniformed personnel and/or personnel wearing any attire with HCSO insignia shall not use any type of tobacco produc ts in any place where there is a reasonable expectation the location would be within the view of the public. E. Members of the public observed using tobacco products on Sheriff’s Off ice grounds should be politely informed of the ban on tobacco use. In the event that a person fails to adhere to the notice a law enforcement deputy should be summoned to assist. F. Non-uniformed Sheriff’s Office personnel may utilize tobacco products upon public property adjacent to Sheriff’s Office facilities such as sidewa lks and streets; however, there can be no agency expenditure to facilitate or improve such areas for the benefit of the tobacco users. Additionally, no additional break time will be provi ded to facilitate “off -property” smoke breaks. G. The use of tobacco pr oducts is prohibited in all Sheriff’s Office vehicles as defined in Section IV, D of this order. * H. Any employee found to have violated this policy shall be subject to formal discipline in accordance with HCSO Rules and Regul ations 4.5.09 ; however, in the case of an employee’s first offense, the employee may elect to participate in a voluntary cessation program with approval from the Division Commander. The cost of participation in the pr ogram shall be the responsibility of th e employee and documentation of successful completion must be recorded by the Division. VI. DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES : All Sheriff’s Office personnel shall adhere to the prohibition on tobacco use at Sheriff’s Office facilities. Employ ees are responsible for ensuring that members of the public are properly informed of the prohibition on the use of tobacco products and for reporting violations of the prohibition to certified personnel. Certified pe rsonnel are expected to address members of the public and visitors who refuse to recognize the ban on tobacco use, and to