N.C. House poised to pass smoking ban
The House voted Wednesday to outlaw smoking in most workplaces and restaurants in North Carolina, a move the ban’s champion called a historic moment for a state built on tobacco.
The bill, which still requires one more vote before it can clear the House, was less stringent than the original proposal, which sought a sweeping ban of nearly all public smoking. The current version would exempt most bars, and it is not clear what effect that exemption would have on the bill’s chances.
The state’s restaurant industry may decide to withdraw its support for the ban for fear that it would give bars a competitive advantage over restaurants. The Senate, which will take up the issue next, could roll back the exemption or change the bill in other ways.
House Majority Leader Hugh Holliman, the primary sponsor of the public smoking ban, said he is unsure what effect the change would have but said, “The bill that leaves the House will truly represent a new age in North Carolina.”
The House approved the bill 75 to 42 after about two hours of debate. Supporters of the total ban said that the issue was one of health and that nonsmoking workers should not have to be subjected to secondhand smoke. Opponents said the bill was a case of government going too far, calling it an assault on a property owner’s rights. Rep. Cary Allred, a Burlington Republican, said the bill was hypocritical because it singled out smoking over other health risks.
“You need to ban fatty foods,” Allred said. “You need to ban the consumption of fatback and fatty bacon in public places. You need to give these children an example so that they won’t keep eating themselves to death.”
Rep. Nelson Cole, a Reidsville Democrat, proposed the exemption that would apply to most bars. Cole’s amendment would allow smoking in businesses that prohibit anyone younger than 18 from entering the premises. The businesses would also have to ensure that smoky air could not drift to areas where smoking is prohibited. That essentially means that smoking would have to be contained in a separate building, said Cole, whose district includes a Commonwealth Brands cigarette factory.
Several opponents said the law would hurt one of North Carolina’s historically important industries.
“Folks, tobacco made this state,” Cole said. “What tobacco’s done for this state, put it where it is. While it’s decreasing, we don’t need to be kicking them in the teeth.”
People are never forced to breathe smoke in the workplace, he argued. “You’re never told you have to work anywhere,” Cole said.
Tobacco companies have supported excluding bars and nightclubs from public smoking bans.
“In those sorts of venues, we believe the business owners should have the right to set whatever policy works for their clientele,” said Maura Payne, a spokeswoman for Winston-Salem based R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, the nation’s second-largest tobacco company.
The bill also makes an exception for private residences, private vehicles, tobacco shops, cigar bars or designated hotel or motel rooms.
Violations of the ban could result in a $50 fine.
The fact that a chamber of the North Carolina legislature is poised to adopt restrictions on public smoking reflects changing attitudes about tobacco. More than 20 states have adopted smoking bans of some sort.
“The cultural change I think happened probably as far as the public goes almost 10 years ago,” said Dr. Adam Goldstein, a professor of family medicine and director of the Nicotine Dependence Program at the UNC School of Medicine.
In Durham, Michael Dearing says he hears the same thing repeatedly about the Green Room, the Durham pool hall he co-owns: Great place. Too smoky.
This year the Green Room decided to make Wednesdays smoke-free. The change led to some new faces in the pool room. The business will also be smoke-free on Saturdays. Dearing has never smoked.
“It’s incredible to be able to have a full bar and you can see from the front to the back of the place,” he said.
Tags: smoking ban
