Information for Tenants

Exposure to secondhand smoke is a health hazard.

Secondhand smoke is not just a nuisance. It is dangerous. Here are some facts about secondhand smoke:

The United States Environmental Protection Agency classifies secondhand smoke as a “Class A” carcinogen, which puts it in the same category as asbestos and other highly carcinogen substances.
Secondhand smoke contains Benzene, Formeldehyde, Arsenic Ammonia, Vinyl Chloride, Hydrogen Cyanide and other highly toxic substances.
Secondhand smoke is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States. It causes approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths and 22,700 to 69,600 heart disease deaths in adult nonsmokers in the United States each year.
Children exposed to secondhand smoke are more likely to develop bronchitis, pneumonia, asthma, and ear infections.
Secondhand smoke has been linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
Once present in a room or home, secondhand smoke can linger in the air for hours.

There are things you can do.

Under Massachusetts state law, smoking is prohibited in the common areas of any multi-unit building that has one or more employee. This could include a superintendent or regular maintenance personnel. For more information or to file a complaint, contact the Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program at 1-800-617-5116.

Talk to your landlord about implementing a smoke-free policy in your building. A packet of information that you can give to your landlord is available in the Resources section of this site.
- Smoke-free policies are 100% legal. Just like landlords can prohibit pets, they can prohibit smoking.
- Smoke-free policies are not discriminatory. Smokers are not a protected class. There is no right to smoke!
- Landlords can still rent to smokers, so long as the tenant follows the smoke-free policy.

Tenants who have qualifying disabilities may have legal protection from secondhand smoke under the Americans With Disabilities Act and the Fair Housing Act. For more information on how the Fair Housing Act applies, read an analysis provided by the Smoke-Free Environments Law Project at http://www.tcsg.org/sfelp/fha_01.pdf.

Legal remedies may be available. There are ways tenants can bring legal action under what is called "common law" against a landlord or against tenants who smoke. These theories include: breach of covenant of quiet enjoyment, negligence, nuisance, breach of warranty of habitability, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, trespass, and constructive eviction. Pursuing these remedies can be costly and time-consuming.