MOSCOW, May 14 (UPI) -- The lower chamber of the Russian Parliament is set to review legislation that would impose fines for smoking in public places, the body's spokesman said.
The bill will introduce possible fines of $48 for people who smoke in non-smoking areas.
"These amendments... are required to enforce the implementation of the [anti-smoking] law, which comes into force on June 1, by imposing relevant sanctions for violating it," Deputy State Duma Speaker Sergei Zheleznyak of the ruling United Russia told RIA Novosti.
Zheleznyak said the Duma, the lower house, will approve the amendments by July 14.
The anti-smoking law that comes into effect June 1 sets out a gradual ban on smoking in public. A ban on smoking in government buildings, healthcare and educational facilities and on public transport will be immediate, but some other provisions, including a ban on smoking in restaurants, will come into effect in a year.
The law also imposes a ban on tobacco advertising and the display of tobacco products in shops.
