Mar 19, 2014 05:22 PM EDT By Jaleesa Baulkman, UniversityHerald Reporter

The use of all forms of tobacco products will be banned on all Georgia's public colleges and universities, beginning next fall, Reuters reported.

The University System of Georgia Board of Regent approved a ban on smoking and all tobacco products on Wednesday. The ban will go into effect on Oct. 1, University of Georgia spokesman John Millsaps told the Associated Press.

The ban will affect 31 public university campuses in Georgia.

The ban applies to all employees, students, contractors and visitors on all property owned, leased or in the possession of the University System of Georgia, officials said in a statement. It will be enforced at events hosted by the institutions within the system.

School officials said exceptions to the policy could be made for research purposes, the AP reported.

"Our aim with this policy is to preserve and improve the health, comfort and environment of employees and any persons occupying (campus) facilities," Marion Fedrick, the University System of Georgia's vice chancellor for human resources, said in a statement.

Fedrick said officials at the board feel a responsibility to promote health and well-being on the University System of Georgia property.

There are more than 1,100 colleges and universities in the United States with smoke-free campuses, and 811 of those ban all tobacco products, Reuters reported, citing the American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation.

"We have been noticing over the last five years an enormous growth in the number of campuses that are passing smoke-free and completely tobacco-free campus policies," Cynthia Hallett, chief executive of American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation, told Reuters.

About half of Georgia's college and Universities have already adopted smoke-free policies.

According to the AP, the enforcement of the ban will be left up to the presidents of each institution within the University System of Georgia.

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