Beginning next year, golf-course fairways will be among the few public spaces where people can use tobacco and not be guilty of a class B misdemeanor.

The Davis Board of Health voted unanimously Tuesday to enact a countywide rule to ban smoking in outdoor public places.

Davis County Health Director Lewis Garrett said there was substantial public support for such a regulation, with no real outcry against it.

However, the regulation aims to clear the air rather than to fill county coffers. The fine on a first offense will be $25, increasing to $100 for subsequent violations within a two-year period.

"We don't expect our law enforcement personnel to make this a priority," Garrett said, adding that self- and peer-enforcement will be the main means to restrict the habit.

The new rule also limits smoking within 25 feet of incidental gatherings, such as lines for fast food, bus stops or automated teller machines.

The regulation allows for designated outdoor smoking zones to be established at least 50 feet away from common-use areas, such as playgrounds and bleachers.

Only about 9 percent of Davis County residents smoke, Garrett said, but four of the six leading causes of death can be linked to secondhand smoke, he said.

Comprehensive signage, including the universally recognized no-smoking symbol, must be posted by June 2009. Costs to post the signs, estimated at about $30,000, will be paid from a tobacco-settlement grant.

cmckitrick@sltrib.com