Bloomberg signs law banning smoking in city parks

Butts out in city parks, beaches and public plazas starting in late May, now that Mayor Michael Bloomberg has signed the smoking ban into law.

“We can raise an entire generation of New Yorkers who are free from the dangers of nicotine addiction,” said Bloomberg, a former smoker, at the bill-signing ceremony Tuesday.

The law, which takes effect in 90 days, is only the latest in the city that curbs public cigarette use — which smokers’ rights groups say encroaches on their civil liberties. In 2002, the city banned smoking in restaurants and bars, and has since increased taxes on cigarettes with $6.46 tacked on to the cost of a pack.

The parks department is charged with enforcing the law. Violators could be hit with a $50 fine.