Tobacco.org

AUSIO: Roundtable for Nov. 5 - Smoking ban passes, open enrollemnt and how you can help military families 

Posted 5:50 p.m. Fri., Nov. 6 - In this week's Beacon Roundtable, Dick Weiss, Mary Delach Leonard, Elia Powers and Dale Singer sit down to talk about the passage of the smoking ban in St. Louis County

Jump to full article »

Falmouth to vote on beach smoking ban 

Voters at Monday's annual town meeting could make all of Falmouth's 11 town beaches smoke-free if they approve a recommendation from Beach Supt. Donald Hoffer and the Falmouth Beach Committee. If it passes, Falmouth will become the third Cape town, in addition to Barnstable and Yarmouth, to ban tobacco products from all public beaches, Hoffer said.

"Cigarette butts and filters end up in the sand, thousands of them every year, and they're not biodegradable," Hoffer said. "We'd be ridding the beaches of noxious debris."

The warrant article -- one of 32 voters will decide on Monday -- stemmed from a unanimous 5-0 vote from the beach committee and simply states "the use of smoking materials on the public beaches of Falmouth is prohibited."

Jump to full article »

ABOUHALKAH: Voters make good calls while lawyers whine  

•Liberty voters approved a tough smoke-free law that will protect residents.

The decision to ban smoking in all restaurants and bars overruled the City Council’s weak ordinance from early 2009, which allowed smoking in too many places. Give credit to a dedicated group of residents who hustled to get this initiative on the ballot.

Now, Raytown shamefully becomes the largest area city whose elected leaders have refused to approve smoke-free legislation, mostly because of a few bar owners’ objections. The Board of Aldermen should change that position.

Jump to full article »

Liberty's Anti-Smoking Vote Raises Concerns for Businesses  

It has only been one day after Liberty voters agreed to beef up the town's existing smoking ban and already there are two big questions: will it drive smoking customers away, and how long will it be before smokers have no where to go?

Tuesday's vote is a very big deal for two Liberty establishments. One is a bar and the other is a bowling alley, but one of the business may be more hurt by the ban than the other.

Liberty's Corner Bar was exempt under Liberty's first smoking ban but that all changes now as the corner bar will also go smoke free on November 23. However, Tuesday's vote still has those who work at the bar confident that things won't change all that much.

Jump to full article »

VIDEO: Business Owners Worry About Smoking Ban Effects -  

St. Louis County voters overwhelmingly passed a smoking ban that will now take effect in St. Louis City as well. Business owners have a little more than one year to get prepared, but there are concerns, already.

Owner of Harry's Restaurant and Bar, Harry Belli, says he speaks from experience. He laid-off 45 employees and lost thousands of dollars when he shut down Harry's West after Ballwin enacted a smoking ban. Even though this smoking ban covers all of St. Louis City and County, he is concerned because casinos have an exemption.

Jump to full article »

• Smoking ban exemptions are now the focus of criticism 

Steve Stenger, the County Council member who insisted that any ban include a casino exemption, said he expected the council to move next year to rescind it.

"With upwards of 65 percent of the people voting in favor of the ban, I think you can see the day coming to phase out that exemption," said Stenger, D-Affton. "Tuesday showed very clearly that most people do not want to be exposed to smoke in any public place."

Stenger predicted that the County Council would take action to eliminate the exemption shortly after the ban takes effect in 2011. If it chose, the council could change the ordinance on its own without submitting it to public vote again. . . .

The city and county exemptions drew attention on many fronts Wednesday.

Those who fought the bans said the casino exemption was unconstitutional, and could be used to invalidate the entire proposition.

At O'Connell's Pub off South Kingshighway, the talk was how to measure a bar's square footage so that it would be protected by the city's five-year exemption for bars under 2,000 square feet.

And in Maplewood, a restaurant owner who opposed the ban is adamantly against exemptions.

Bill Hannegan, an activist against both smoking bans, said opponents met Wednesday with lawyers to discuss ways to overturn them. . . .

And he said his group has discussed an initiative petition to address the most restrictive provisions of the city ban. His group, Keep St. Louis Free, views the city ban as more onerous than the county ban, which has the exemption for bars that make less than 25 percent of their revenue off food.

Jump to full article »

St. Louis smoking bans raise questions at state level  

Following adoption of smoking bans in St. Louis and St. Louis County, one Missouri legislator who has previously supported a statewide ban said he now thinks differently.

Rep. Joseph Fallert, D-Ste. Genevieve, said he thinks now might be the time for smoking bans to be local initiatives. Fallert said after his initial proposal for banning smoking in public places statewide failed he has been watching the progress of such legislation in local jurisdictions.

He originally said he thought it was important to make it a state law to allay the fear of businesses losing revenue because of patrons going to other counties or municipalities; but with the success of these bans at local levels, he said he does not see the need for a statewide ban.

"There is no reason to jump in and make a huge change when things are already headed in the right direction," Fallert said.

With the passage of Proposition N, 50 percent of Missourians are now in a smoke-free environment, St. Louis County Councilwoman Barbara Fraser said.

Proposition N prohibits smoking in certain public areas in St. Louis city and county. For example, within city limits, the law prevents smoking in bars and restaurants, but in St. Louis County, any bar that makes less than 25 percent of its revenue from food can allow smoking.

The election, which had a 20 percent voter turnout, resulted in two-thirds of voters favoring the ban. The ban will go into effect Jan. 2, 2011.

Jump to full article »

AUDIO: St. Louis County Smoking Ban Could Lead to Statewide Ban  

Lawmakers say a smoking ban St. Louis voters approved yesterday could lead to a ban statewide. Christine Slusser reports.

The new smoking ban takes affect in certain indoor public places in St. Louis County. The new ban may give momentum toward a statewide smoking ban. Jefferson County Democratic Representative Jeff Roorda says St. Louis has a huge impact on statewide issues.

Jump to full article »

St. Louis County Voters Embrace Future; Vote "Yes" for Smoking Ban 

That crisp, clean air you're smelling this morning? Ladies and gentlemen, that's progress!

That's (dare we say it?) the future! . . .

Oh, and that Kirkwood vote also won somebody a bet with anti-smoking-ban crusader Bill Hannegan. (I'll take that case of Schlafly Pale Ale whenever you get a chance.)

One last note: The city and county smoking bans don't go into effect for another 14 months -- January 2011. So, smoke 'em while you can.

Jump to full article »

St. Louis County voters OK smoking ban  

St. Louis County voters approved a smoking ban for most public places at the polls Tuesday, a move that will trigger a similar smoking ban in St. Louis City.

Both bans take effect Jan. 2, 2011 and exempt casinos, some smaller bars and the smoking lounges at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.

More than 65 percent of county voters favored the smoking ban, called Proposition N, according to unofficial results from the St. Louis County Board of Election Commissioners.

Jump to full article »

Prop N passes by wide margin  

“We have made a major step forward on cleaner air and obviously a healthy environment for our citizens in the county and city, and hopefully for the whole state in the future,” said County Councilwoman Barbara Fraser, D-University City, who introduced the St. Louis County Council bill that put the smoking ban on the ballot.

Proposition N opponent Bill Hannegan, though disappointed, downplayed the result, saying that “it was always going to be tough in the county” due to its low smoking rate.

Hannegan, who heads the group Keep St. Louis Free, added that “the fight’s not over” and that the opposition could challenge the constitutionality of the casino exemption, bring up a conflict between the two smoking bans and state law, or push to amend the city’s smoking ban. . . .

Proposition N supporters gathered with posters and signs during the Monday rush hour at five street-side locations, including the intersection of Forest Park Parkway and Skinker Boulevard.

More than 200 Saint Louis University medical students and faculty gathered on their campus on Thursday to rally for the ban.

The Washington University community’s highest-profile supporter of the proposition is Martha Bhattacharya, postdoctoral fellow in developmental biology, who served as treasurer of pro-proposition County Citizens for Cleaner Air. Bhattacharya said last week she encouraged students to vote for the measure.

Jump to full article »

• County approves smoking ban  

St. Louis County voters on Tuesday simultaneously made most public places there and in the city smoke-free.

With light turnout -- about 20 percent of the county's 705,000 registered voters -- about two-thirds of them favored Proposition N, which, with some exemptions, bans smoking in public places on Jan. 2, 2011.

The ban applies to the city also because the Board of Aldermen last month approved a similar measure, contingent on county passage. The city ban, including exemptions, also takes effect Jan. 2, 2011.

With the statewide ban in Illinois, Tuesday's vote means that two-thirds of the St. Louis area's population will live in an area that bans smoking in public places.

Meanwhile, Kirkwood voters overwhelmingly passed a separate ban that is more strict than the county's, in that it applies to all bar-restaurants. The county's ban exempts bars that don't sell a lot of food, but does allow municipalities to enact stricter bans. The county's exceptions also include casino gaming floors and the smoking lounges at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. . . .

Voss predicted that his association would challenge the smoking ban in court. The ban, he said, "is so unfair."

Bill Hannegan, a leading opponent of smoking bans, said he and his supporters soon will consider whether to challenge the constitutionality of the exemption for casinos gaming floors. He called it "special interest" legislation.

Some Kirkwood bar and restaurant owners who fought the last smoking ban proposal there in 2006 did not wage a campaign this time.

"There was no organized opposition in Kirkwood, as far as I know," said

Jump to full article »

St. Louis County smoking ban approved, citywide ban to follow  

St. Louis County voters have passed a smoking ban that will have a far reaching affect for businesses in both the county and St. Louis City.

* Read the entire 'Proposition N' legislation by clicking here

With all 480 precincts reporting in, 'Proposition N' was approved by nearly a two to one margin, 65.3 percent to 34.7 percent. More than 137,000 votes were cast, resulting in less than a 20 percent total voter turnout.

"First, it's a public health issue, but it's also about what we want to be as a city," said St. Louis City Mayor Francis Slay. "...It's about time we get up to speed with what's happening all over the country."

Tuesdays night's ballot results will change the smoking policy for all of St. Louis City,

Jump to full article »

Smoking ban wins big in the County  

Most public places in St. Louis city and County will be going smoke-free in 2011.

Unofficial results from Tuesday's election show the St. Louis County ban passing with nearly 2/3 of the vote. That means the city ban approved last Friday will go into effect as well.

Both bans exempt the casinos. Small bars are totally exempt in the county, and get a five-year reprieve in the city. The smoking lounges at Lambert Airport are exempt as well.

The carve-outs made no one happy. A supporter of the ban, Martin Pion, the president of the Missouri Group Against Smoking Pollution, called them unfortunate, and said the county should now look at tightening the language in its ban.

"There's broad and strong public support for this measure," he said. "I see this as giving them their marching orders, really," though he said protecting nearly 1.3 million people from the dangers of secondhand smoke is no small feat.

Marty Ginsburg, the owner of the Sports Page in Chesterfield and a leading opponent of the measure, was a bit aggravated, though he expected the result. . . .

Voters in Kirkwood also approved their own smoking ban; nearly two dozen municipalities now have some form of the legislation.

Jump to full article »

VIDEO: With Nearly All Votes Counted, St. Louis County Smoking Ban, E-911 Passing  

It was the most controversial measure on the ballot, but the St. Louis County smoking ban initiative did not pull in many voters. Turnout was low at the polls for Tuesday's election. With all of the votes counted, 65% of residents voted for the smoking ban in public places compared to 34% against. Since it passed in the County, the ban will also apply to the city of St. Louis because of a provision passed by the Board of Aldermen.

The American Cancer Society released this statement Tuesday night:

While it's clear that Proposition N does not deliver smoke-free protections to all workers, voters in St. Louis County have overwhelmingly voiced their support for smoke-free indoor air. The passage of this measure confirms that smoke-free laws are uniformly popular with the vast majority of the public and brings critical momentum toward achieving meaningful health protection from secondhand smoke for all people who live and work in St. Louis County.

The focus now will be on delivering health protection from secondhand smoke for those workers who still do not have it – those in bars and casinos. The American Cancer Society is strongly committed to the hard work that remains to give everyone in the St. Louis region smoke-free protection.

Jump to full article »