The ban on smoking in most federal buildings is not pursuant to laws enacted by Congress. The ban is the result of executive branch orders and actions. Some federal agencies have limited smoking to designated areas while others have instituted an outright ban. Although bills and amendments to ban smoking in all federal buildings, including congressional buildings, have been offered repeatedly in Congress, none have been successful to date.

Smoking has been prohibited on the Senate floor since 1914 and on the House floor since 1871. However, smoking is permitted in the party cloakrooms right off the floor. Also, smoking is permitted in Senate hallways and in designated areas of the Capitol Building. Smoking policies in House and Senate office buildings are set by House Members and Senators for their individual office suites. Smoking policies in committee rooms and during hearings and committee meetings are also established individually by each committee.

Roll-Call, a Washington paper which focuses on Capitol Hill, recently surveyed Members' smoking habits. ["Cigarettes and Congress," by Amy Keller and Darren Goode, Roll Call, Sept. 15, 1997.] They found 30 House Members and 6 Senators in the current Congress who admit to smoking. Congressional smokers are down 53% since a previous Roll-Call survey conducted 8 years ago, in 1989.