The push for designated smoking areas on the Fresno City College campus is one step closer to achieving real results. The legislation for establishing smoking areas was approved by the Classified Senate on March 25.

 The classified senate is made up of FCC staff members in various positions. These include people in Applied Technology, library and Athletics at FCC.

The issue needs to be approved by four different constituent groups and is one vote away from being passed.  Associated Student Government president Monique Reyna will present the legislation to the Academic Senate on April 15.

The legislation has been in motion since 2004 and has been a major focus of Reyna’s presidency.

“I have had a lot of students complain and about it and talk about it,” Reyna said. “If I do anything this semester, I’m [going to] make sure I get this passed.”

FCC students voted on the issue in the 2011 ASG election. Thirty-six percent of the students, the majority, voted in favor of the new smoking areas.  Twenty-one percent of the students voted for a smoke-free campus and a nother twenty one percent voted for “no change” to the smoking areas.

“It was one of those projects that was left behind by other senates and I seen this as an opportunity to help out,” said ASG Senator Josh Zamora, who has been involved with the issue. Zamora has asthma and is also a smoker.

Leon Velasco, a major part of the  push for designated smoking areas said he is “excited to finally reach the goal of getting much of the second hand smoke away from high traffic areas as possible.”

The current smoking rules allow students to smoke as long they are 20 feet away from the exit of of a building.

The new smoking areas would include open parking lots, the sunken patio in front of the library, and an area on the west lawn of the Old Administration Building.

If the legislation is approved, the smoking areas would go into effect for the Fall 2013 semester.