July 4 Marks Four-Year Return of Atlantic City Casino Smoking
Four years have passed since indoor smoking was allowed again in Atlantic City casinos as of today, July 4, 2025. Legislators in New Jersey are still being urged by numerous gambling and resort employees who want a clean indoor air working environment to close the smoking ban granted to the nine resorts along the shore.
According to Casino.org, members of the organization Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects, or CEASE, are still "needlessly exposed to secondhand smoke." Following the expiration of New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy's (D) emergency order that temporarily banned indoor smoking in casinos and parimutuel facilities due to the COVID-19 epidemic on July 4, 2021, CEASE, a grassroots alliance of table game dealers, slot attendants, and other resort employees, was established.
"During the first year of the pandemic, it became abundantly clear that eliminating smoke from casinos benefits everyone — there was a noticeable improvement in the health and quality of life of casino workers, and casinos in Atlantic City prospered despite industry leaders’ sky-will-fall narrative,” said Pete Naccarelli, a longtime Atlantic City table games dealer and co-founder of CEASE.
“Four years later, the evidence is clearer than ever that casinos don’t have to sacrifice workers’ health to foster economic success — in fact, almost 80% of South Jersey voters say they would be more likely to visit a casino if it were smoke-free,” Naccarelli continued.
“So, why are we still fighting for our basic right to breathe clean air in the workplace? The most patriotic thing New Jersey lawmakers can do this 4th of July is pass smokefree legislation as soon as possible,” the CEASE leader appeale.
Governor Limited in Power
Murphy has stated time and time again that he would approve legislation requiring the nine casinos to ban smoking.
"If legislation comes to my desk to ban smoking, you should assume that I will sign it,” the term-limited lame duck said in May. “There was a period of time due to the public health emergency where we did not allow [smoking] in the casinos. But at a certain point, that was always going to expire, and it did expire.”
The New Jersey Emergency Health Powers Act gives Murphy the authority to issue public health emergency orders in his capacity as governor. However, these declarations must be made during a state-designated public health emergency, such as COVID-19, and they can only be temporary.
Murphy cannot issue an executive order that would end casino smoking forever on his own. The state's 2006 Smoke-Free Air Act, which permits gaming floors with at least 150 slot machines, 10 table games, or some combination of these to set aside up to 25% of their space for tobacco use, may only be changed by the New Jersey Legislature. Separate ventilation systems for the smoking area are not required by law.
Questioning the Significance of Smoking
Divergent findings have been drawn from a number of studies on the effects of smoking prohibitions on gross revenue and the continued legalization of smoking in casinos. A total smoking prohibition, according to Atlantic City's casino resorts, would result in lower revenue and, consequently, job losses.
However, the casino that is deliberately smoke-free, Parx, continues to dominate in gross gaming revenue in Pennsylvania, a state where smoking is permitted in casinos.
Last year, Pennsylvania's 17 physical casinos recorded $3.38 billion in gross gaming income from their table games and slot machines. Parx controlled around 17% of the market, or $569.8 million.
