A new proposal in the Florida House would sharply limit where people can smoke marijuana, aligning it with many of the same rules that already apply to cigarette use in public spaces such as parks, beaches and sidewalks.

House Bill 389, filed for the 2026 legislative session by Rep. Alex Andrade, a Republican from Pensacola, would add marijuana to Florida’s existing public smoking restrictions and significantly broaden where any kind of smoking or vaping is allowed.

Under the bill, smoking or vaping marijuana or tobacco would be prohibited on streets, sidewalks, highways, public parks, and public beaches. It would also be banned in common areas of schools, hospitals, government buildings, apartment complexes, offices, lodging establishments, restaurants, transportation facilities, and retail shops—many of the same places where cigarette smoking is already restricted under state law and local ordinances.

The measure carves out a now-familiar exception: unfiltered cigars. As with Florida’s current tobacco rules, HB 389 would not apply to unfiltered cigars, a carve-out that has drawn criticism in earlier debates over beach smoking bans and other local ordinances.

If passed, the bill would work alongside Florida’s broader framework on smoking and vaping. Voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2002 banning smoking in enclosed indoor workplaces, and lawmakers later extended restrictions to other spaces. In 2022, the legislature gave cities and counties the power to restrict smoking on the beaches and parks they own, a move that led to local bans in several coastal communities, including Jacksonville Beach.

Marijuana has been legal for medical use in Florida since voters backed Amendment 2 in 2016. Subsequent legislation and court rulings cleared the way for smokable medical cannabis, but only in private, and explicitly not in public spaces or businesses covered by the state’s cigarette smoking ban. A 2024 ballot effort to legalize adult-use recreational marijuana, Amendment 3, won a simple majority but fell short of the 60% supermajority needed to pass.

HB 389 would further clarify that public smoking and vaping rules apply equally to marijuana and tobacco. A related Senate measure, SB 226, proposes similar language, defining “public place” broadly and prohibiting smoking or vaping there while still exempting unfiltered cigars.

Supporters argue the bill is about public health, secondhand smoke, and litter, not about rolling back access to medical cannabis. Health advocates have long pointed to the risks of secondhand smoke and the environmental impact of cigarette and joint butts on beaches and in parks.

Critics, however, contend the proposal leaves few legal options for adults—especially medical marijuana patients—who may need to medicate away from home. Civil liberties groups and some cannabis advocates also question why unfiltered cigars remain exempt while marijuana and most other smoking products face tighter limits.

The bill has only just been filed and will next be assigned to House committees, where lawmakers are expected to debate enforcement, penalties, and how the rules would interact with existing local ordinances. If ultimately approved and signed by Governor Ron DeSantis, the new restrictions would take effect July 1, 2026, reshaping where Floridians can legally light up—whether it’s a cigarette or a cannabis joint.