NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The state plans to put a lawmaker on notice after a Channel 4 I-Team investigation.

Video: I-Team's State Office Smoking Report Draws State's Attention

On Monday, the I-Team’s Jeremy Finley reported how a lawmaker and some other people were breaking the law behind closed doors by using a conference room and an office as an area to smoke, even though state law prohibits smoking in state buildings.

If an establishment allows someone to smoke on or in its premises the state issues a letter, one of which will be sent to Rep. Joe McCord, R-Maryville.

It was in McCord's office at the state Legislature that the I-Team spotted someone smoking.

McCord was among the state lawmakers who voted for the smoking ban a couple of years ago.

"It's hypocritical. It's a double standard, and there's no way to justify it," said Drew Johnson of the Tennessee Center for Policy Research.

Along with McCord's office, a source also told the I-Team that inside Legislative Plaza, an entire conference room designed for official business had become a room to skirt the smoking law and not get caught.

In one of the conference rooms, the I-Team’s Jeremy Finley reported, there was an air purification system, a sandbag to seal the space the below the door and a homemade sign reminding people not to open the door to the outside hallway.

McCord declined comment about what the I-Team found, but the report is prompting lots of reaction on Capitol Hill.

The state agency that fines workplaces for smoking said the incident is embarrassing.

"Based on your story, we're going to make contact with the appropriate authorities and get assurances that they are going to comply," said Tennessee Department of Labor representative Daniel Bailey.

Following Finley’s report, the state will issue McCord a letter telling him to stop allowing smoking in his offices.

If he continues to allow it, he'll get another warning and possibly a fine.

"It's just sending a message that he's higher than what the law says, and if he's setting up air purifiers so that smoke doesn't leave the room that he is hiding something and that's wrong, and it's sending a poor message," said anti-smoking advocate Matthew Ewing.

Rep. Brian Kelsey, R-Germantown, just shook his head.

"It makes people cynical when they view elected officials acting in a hypocritical way like this," he said.

Kelsey publicly criticized lawmakers he said were skirting the smoking law last year.

The person who would enforce laws in the statehouse is Speaker Jimmy Naifeh, D-Covington.

Naifeh declined comment last year on lawmakers ignoring the smoking law and did not respond to a request for comment on McCord’s office.

"It's the height of hypocrisy that we would pass a smoking ban on private businesses just last year and here the house Democratic leadership won't even enforce our smoking ban here in a public building that's supposed to be for the people," said Kelsey.

Some people just want to know if McCord plans on following the law.

"And I think more importantly, he needs to admit to everybody that he was wrong in what he did," Ewing said.

McCord told the Knoxville News Sentinel on Tuesday that smoking was going on in his office but that it won't anymore.

McCord has not returned calls placed by Channel 4 for comment.

To report a violation of the Non-Smokers Protection Act, call 1-800-293-8228 or click here.