Tobacco.org

• Smoking ban arrives with the new year 

Restaurants and bars will ring in the new year by asking smokers to snuff their cigarettes, but the city has no plans to enforce its new smoking ban.

Beginning Friday, Galveston's smoking ordinance -- one of the strictest in the state -- bans smoking in restaurants, bars and private clubs, such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars club, on patios and in outdoor seating areas, including the sidewalks outside venues along The Strand and Postoffice Street.

While some restaurant and bar owners said they plan to obey the city's ban, the Galveston Police Department said the ordinance is among the last on its list of laws to enforce, city spokeswoman Alicia Cahill said.

Cahill said the police department sees the ordinance as a symbolic gesture; while the city council had good intentions when it approved the plan, it's "unreasonable for the police department to give (the ban) its undivided attention," she said.

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Galveston Has New Smoking Ban 

Galveston's smoking ordinance went into effect on Friday.

The ban is one of the strictest in the state.

The law bans smoking in restaurants, bars and private clubs, on patios and in outdoor seating areas.

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Smoking law good for some, bad for others 

It's 2 o'clock in the afternoon at Ioanni's Grill in the Pelletier Harbor Shopping Plaza, and only two people are smoking. Three men are seated around the bar drinking frosty, cold beer and there's one couple at a table by the door enjoying some cold beverages, as well as a couple of cigarettes.

This is a very different scene compared to Ioanni's at 11 o'clock at night, when the small establishment is typically packed with people having drinks, watching sports or waiting for their turn at karaoke and smoking - lots of cigarettes.

But as of midnight Saturday, smoking in Ioanni's, and just about any other bar or restaurant in the state, will be a thing of the past. The state General Assembly approved the smoking ban in the spring.

"I can't wait," said Jeff Turnage, owner and operator of Ioanni's. "I quit smoking a year ago, and I hate the smell of it now."

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No butts about it: Dakota County Technical College goes tobacco-free in 2010  

When students return to class at Dakota County Technical College Jan. 11, they should leave one provision behind.

Effective Jan. 1, the use of any tobacco product by employees, students or visitors is prohibited on college property.

The Rosemount facility joins a growing list of higher education institutions in the state that have gone tobacco-free. There are currently 14, from other technical colleges like Northwest in Bemidji to the University of Minnesota Duluth.

Former Student Senate President Jenny Anderson of Rosemount initiated the policy at DCTC after attending a statewide student association conference in December 2008.

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Retailers Complying With Tobacco Laws 

The state Health Department gives high marks to retailers for complying with the law forbidding tobacco sales to kids under 18.

A report released by the agency says nearly 92 percent of retailers who sell tobacco are complying with the ban. That's the highest compliance rate since the enforcement program started 11 years ago.

Health Commissioner Richard Daines says the state's youth smoking rate is now at 14.7 percent.

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DROP IN : Entertainment  

The weather was surprisingly favorable when Mike and I carpooled down the length of Seneca Street into the city to Cigars Bar and Grill. From the outside, the building looked like a tiny hole in the wall, but once we headed indoors, the establishment was more expansive than it appeared. . . .

I assumed from the name that I'd be able to smoke indoors due to a grandfathered cigar license, but this wasn't the case. I grabbed a smoke on the enclosed adjoining patio outside and took in the South Buffalo landscape. An exterior bar lay dormant now that the warmer weather is behind us.

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NC smoking ban for restaurants, bars signals another shift in state's tobacco history 

In dozens of states, Gary Richards wouldn't have been able to light up a Marlboro before tucking into his meat-lover's pizza, as he did at Satisfaction Restaurant & Bar this week. But in North Carolina, the nation's leading tobacco producer, limits on indoor smoking have lagged behind those in much of the country.

That changes Saturday, when smoking in restaurants and bars is banned in the state that is home to two major tobacco companies and where the golden leaf helped build Duke and Wake Forest universities.

"There's smokers and there's nonsmokers. We've gotten along in the past," Richards, 52, said this week during a pre-meal smoke at the restaurant inside a former tobacco warehouse. "Why can't I come in here and have my beer and a couple of slices of pizza and a cigarette?"

The dangers of secondhand smoke to employee health and complaints from patrons about the smell finally won out when the Legislature approved the ban in 2009 after years of failures.

"This law doesn't tell anybody they shouldn't smoke," said state Rep. Hugh Holliman, a lung cancer survivor whose sister died of lung cancer. He led the charge for the legislation. "It's saying nonsmokers should have the same right to breathe clean air."

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Smoking ban might go even further  

Mecklenburg County officials said Thursday they would push to expand a statewide ban on smoking in bars and restaurants that goes into effect during the weekend.

Speaking at a news conference, County Commission Chair Jennifer Roberts and Health Department Director Dr. Wynn Mabry said they would look into proposals to ban smoking in other local workplaces and the entrances to buildings.

"This is a sign of the times," Mabry said of the movement to outlaw smoking in public places. "This will be a progressive process."

The comments came in response to questions about North Carolina's new ban on smoking in bars and restaurants. Starting Saturday, the state will impose a fine of up to $50 for smoking inside bars and restaurants and $200 for business owners who permit it.

Cigar bars and nonprofit private clubs are exempt from the law. Some patio areas outside bars and restaurants are also excluded.

Many Mecklenburg workplaces, government and business offices already prohibit smoking, including Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, the Charlotte Area Transit System, local colleges and municipal government agencies.

But Mabry said he is worried about factories and warehouses where there are some "hard-core smokers."

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Smoking ban for bars, restaurants begins Jan 2 

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Smoking ban starts Saturday  

DURHAM -- Bars and restaurants across the state are bracing for the sea change that will come at the stroke of midnight tonight.

Patrons from that point on will be banned from smoking in most dining establishments in the state. Only a smattering of businesses are exempted -- nonprofit private clubs, country clubs, cigar lounges and tobacco shops.

The ban is being implemented with some trepidation by local business owners, who are already hearing complaints from customers who were accustomed to having a smoke with their drink.

"A lot of the regulars ... feel that smokers are being unduly targeted," said Fergus Bradley, a co-owner of three bars and restaurants in downtown that, as of today, still allow smoking -- The Federal, James Joyce Irish Pub and Alivia's Durham Bistro.

"The Joyce and The Federal are known as places where you can enjoy a cigarette and beer at the bar," Bradley said.

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Associations celebrates ban on smoking  

The American Lung Association in North Carolina commends Governor Bev Perdue and lung health champions Rep. Hugh Holliman and Sen. Bill Purcell, as the law they supported goes into effect on Saturday, January 2, prohibiting smoking in public restaurants and bars.

“This will be an historic day for North Carolina and the health of its citizens,” said Deborah Bryan, North Carolina State Executive for the American Lung Association. “The new law is a landmark step forward in the fight for healthy lungs and air in North Carolina.”

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VIDEO: Smoking ban sparks debate about rights, health risks 

In Durham, Gary Richards enjoyed a pre-meal smoke before eating a meat-lover's pizza at Satisfaction Restaurant & Bar in Brightleaf Square, a former tobacco warehouse.

"There's smokers, and there's nonsmokers. We've gotten along in the past," Richards said. "Why can't I come in here and have my beer and a couple of slices of pizza and a cigarette?"

Ron Fitzgerald, a customer at Sammy's Tap and Grill in Raleigh, agreed. "I think the individual restaurant owners ought to be able to make their own decision whether they want smoking," he said.

But a fellow Sammy's patron disagreed. "Personally, I like the fact that there's not going to be smoking," customer Frank Milchuck said.

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North Carolina Bans Smoking In Bars, Restaurants 

But in North Carolina, the nation's leading tobacco producer, limits on indoor smoking have lagged behind those in much of the country.

That changes Saturday, when smoking in restaurants and bars is banned in the state that is home to two major tobacco companies and where the golden leaf helped build Duke and Wake Forest universities.

"There's smokers and there's nonsmokers. We've gotten along in the past," Richards, 52, said this week during a pre-meal smoke at the restaurant inside a former tobacco warehouse. "Why can't I come in here and have my beer and a couple of slices of pizza and a cigarette?"

The dangers of secondhand smoke to employee health and complaints from patrons about the smell finally won out when the Legislature approved the ban in 2009 after years of failures.

"This law doesn't tell anybody they shouldn't smoke," said state Rep. Hugh Holliman, a lung cancer survivor whose sister died of lung cancer. He led the charge for the legislation. "It's saying nonsmokers should have the same right to breathe clean air."

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New Ways to Become a Criminal in 2010  

North Carolina remains the nation's largest tobacco grower, but beginning on Saturday smoking is banned in restaurants and bars across the state.

A 2006 U.S. Surgeon General's report on secondhand smoke and personal stories about smoking-related illness helped persuade the Legislature to pass a bill in May. It was signed into law by Gov. Beverly Perdue.

Smoking is now prohibited in restaurants in 29 states and in bars in 25. There is also a partial smoking ban in Virginia.

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NC smoking ban at restaurants, bars detailed  

WHERE NOT TO SMOKE: All indoor areas of nearly every restaurant and bar in the state are covered by the ban. Smoking also is prohibited in enclosed areas of hotels and inns if the establishment prepares and serves food or drink. Places such as convenience stores and bowling alleys also are nonsmoking zones if the businesses comply with sanitation laws for eateries.

EXCEPTIONS: Outside restaurant or bar patios are exempt from the ban unless they have a roof and a wall or side coverings on all sides or all sides but one.

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