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Stockman's Bar and Grill goes smoke-free in bar 

Stockman's Bar and Grill instituted a smoke-free policy in its bar area starting on Feb. 1.

"It was time to create a healthier environment for our customers, both current and in the future," Stockman's representative Barbara Walker said.

Walker also said there is a niche market in Pinedale for a smoke-free environment.

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WENINO:Where does 'right' to smoke end? 

The “Smoke Free” initiative has stirred strong emotions on both sides of the issue. I’m passionately anti-smoking. I do understand the resistance to government intrusion into private business but in this case I think the aversion is misplaced. Most people are in favor of government-imposed fire safety regulations for theaters as well as health safety regulations for food service. . . .

So where does a person’s “right” to smoke end? How can otherwise good, caring people behave so selfishly and inconsiderately as to subject their family and friends to harmful cigarette smoke? How can otherwise reasonable and intelligent people think that they have the “right” to foul the air that other people breathe?

If people who smoke would be honest with themselves, they would stop calling smoking their “right” and start calling it what it actually is ... it’s their addiction. And then they would realize that no person or business is under any obligation to accommodate their addiction.

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LETTER: Smokefree laws protect youth 

My grandfather died when I was 11 due to smoking-related lung cancer. I was devastated. Yet, just a little more than a year later, my desire to be accepted by my teenage peer group led me to begin my relationship with cigarettes. Over time I became addicted to nicotine and smoking three packs a day.

I became pregnant when I was 23 and my OBGYN advised me not to quit "cold turkey," as I would put the baby in shock, so I began a slow cessation. But because of my addiction, I couldn't entirely quit which I justified, rationalized, and threw in the face of people who gave me looks of sadness or disappointment. As soon as I gave birth, I was quickly back to two or more packs a day. . . .

Knowing that the majority of tobacco users smoke their first cigarette before the age of 18 and that Wyoming has one of the highest rate of youth smoking in the nation at 22 percent; I feel we owe it to the next generation to protect their health. . . .

To me, this is not an issue of business owner or patron's rights, it is a matter of protecting our most valuable resource; the next generation, from the pitfalls of tobacco. I support Smokefree Natrona County's efforts to protect the health of our community, me, and most importantly, my daughter.

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Casper to consider smoking ban 

The Casper City Council last week voted to open up the debate on whether there should be a smoking ban in bars, restaurants and other businesses.

While the exact scope of the ban hasn’t yet been established, one proposal will likely be a measure put forward by Smoke Free Wyoming that would prohibit smoking in all businesses.

“I believe we have the non-smoking group coming February 13,” said Mayor Kenyne Schlager. “At that point, I think we would have to do some options, so we can take a look at what might be the avenue you want to research.”

Council member Paul Bertoglio remarked the council might consider using a previous proposed ban as a starting point.

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Casper City Council gauges support for public smoking ban 

The Casper City Council will determine today whether there is enough support among members to propose a public smoking ban.

Mayor Kenyne Schlager said she scheduled the discussion to poll council opinions.

“I want to make sure I’m not the only person that is interested in hearing the presentation,” she said. “If I’m the only one, I would take it off the agenda.”

Schlager said the discussion about creating an ordinance is tentatively scheduled for a Feb. 13 work session.

No ordinance has been prepared yet and details would be discussed in February.

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Casper City Council plans for smoking ban debate 

The Casper City Council agreed Thursday to continue on schedule with consideration of a smoking ban proposal.

Initial discussion of the proposal is scheduled for Feb. 13 and a detailed ordinance has yet to be constructed. Mayor Kenyne Schlager suggested during the work session that a separate public meeting be held at a later date to debate the issue. Councilman Paul Bertoglio agreed, adding that two meetings may be necessary.

“The last time we did this, it was five hours the first night for the ‘pro.’ The ‘con’ was five hours the next,” he said.

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• Smoking ban gains acceptance in Cheyenne  

“I love it, dude,” she says, between drags. “Whether you like to smoke or not, you don’t like to be suffocated at a bar.”

City leaders enacted Cheyenne’s smoking ban in 2006 following a series of contentious meetings. Critics complained the ordinance trampled on the rights of business owners. Bars and restaurant feared patrons would desert them for establishments outside the city.

Those same arguments are now being made in Casper, where the City Council will soon consider whether to ban smoking in all indoor businesses. If Cheyenne’s experience is any indication, the debate will be passionate at first, but then recede into quiet acceptance once the ordinance goes into effect.

People rarely talk about Cheyenne’s smoking ban anymore, residents say. It’s become the status quo. Businesses continued to draw customers. Even some smokers, like Banta, prefer the clean air.

“I don’t like smelling like a cigarette, even though I’m a smoker,” she says.

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Smoking issue spontaneously ignites council meeting 

The smoking ban issue unexpectedly blew back into the Casper City Council meeting Nov. 15, hinting of a larger battle to come.

Local liquor dealer association member Pat Sweeny re-lit the topic, saying he wanted to take a proactive position on behalf of liquor license owners and businesses against the ban.

“I’m coming to speak to you tonight concerning opposition to the smoking ban. There’s been lots of coverage on the desire of Smoke-Free Natrona County to try to put forth a smoking ban. We believe that so far you’ve gotten one side of the story,” Sweeney said. “Smoking bans, we believe, take away a business owner’s ability to accommodate customer preference. The hospitality industry is a mirror of our society, and we’ll always respond to our clientele’s request and requirements. Therefore, businesses will determine whether their customers desire a non-smoking format.”

Sweeney addressed the council during its open mike time at the end of the meeting, and the topic wasn’t on the agenda; but his remarks sparked nearly 45 minutes of comments both for and against the ban.

“At a liquor dealers meeting ... we just kind of randomly counted up full retail licenses, and we think it’s about half-and-half on bars right now within the city. Some are smoke-free, and some are still smoking,” Sweeney said. “Smoking ban mandates will give no time for the market or our customers to adjust, resulting in lost sales and lost jobs.”

Smoke Free Natrona County spokeswoman Rachel Bailey was also at the meeting, and spoke in support of the ban.

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Council hears from Smoke Free Casper 

The Casper City Council continues to review what next steps to take, if any, on a request from Smoke Free Casper to ban smoking in all public buildings.

In a work session Oct. 27, the council was presented with the results of poll that indicated 53 percent of the respondents strongly favored a smoke-free law, 21 percent strongly opposed, while 14 percent were somewhat in favor and 8 percent somewhat opposed. The rest were undecided.

“We started with a list of registered voters who live in Natrona County, then we conducted live telephone interviews with a random sample of 854 of these registered voters,” said Chris Keating, the president and founder of Keating Research, hired by Smoke Free Wyoming to conduct the poll.

“By choosing a large sample, in this case 854 voters, the worst case margin of error for this random sample is 3.4 percent, that’s a more than 95 percent level [of accuracy],” Keating told the council.

Meanwhile, Neil Short a volunteer for Smoke Free Casper, said the poll shows strong support for a smoke free law that would prohibit smoking in all indoor public places including restaurants, bars and other indoor work places.

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VIDEO: Business owner, activists discuss smoking ban 

Smoke Free Natrona County, an organization of businesses and individuals, will propose an ordinance prohibiting smoking in indoor public places, such as bars, restaurants and bowling alleys. Randy Carlen, owner of the Eagle Bowl, shares his thoughts on why a ban shouldn't exist while Neil Short and Rachel Bailey present the issue as a public health concern.

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Pdf: Smoke-Free Natrona County Telephone Poll 

Results of a poll are on pages 1-5; specific responses to questions are on pages 6-18.

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Natrona County, WY Smoke-Free Live Telephone Poll — May/June, 2011

Hello, may please I speak with {name on the list}?

If voter on the list is not available say: May I please speak with the youngest person in the household who is registered to vote?

My name is name of interviewer. I’m calling from _________. I’m not selling anything. We’re doing a survey on some topics that I’m sure you will find interesting.

Screener questions

SB. Do you live in Natrona County, WY, or not?

Yes ...............................................................................................100%

No ...............................................................................................Terminate interview

1. Do you favor or oppose a law in your community that would prohibit smoking in all indoor public places, including restaurants, bars and other indoor workplaces? If favor or oppose ask: Do you strongly or somewhat favor/oppose this law? If don’t know / undecided ask: Which way do you lean – Favor or Oppose?

Favor .................................................................................... 67

Oppose ................................................................................. 29

Strongly favor ............................................................................. 53%

Somewhat favor ......................................................................... 13%

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• Poll shows support for Natrona County smoking ordinance  

Two-thirds of Natrona County voters favor an ordinance that would prohibit smoking in all indoor businesses and public places, according to a poll released today.

The poll also found that voters, by nearly the same margin, rank the right to breathe clean air above the right of business owners to set their own smoking rules.

The advocacy group Smokefree Natrona County commissioned the poll, which was performed by Keating Research Inc. of Colorado. The firm polled 854 registered voters in Natrona County in May and June.

Smokefree Natrona County wants the Casper City Council to pass an ordinance that would eliminate smoking in all indoor workplaces, including bars and restaurants. The poll suggests the community recognizes the need for such a law, said Smokefree volunteer Neil Short.

"With two out of every three voters of Natrona County backing an ordinance such as this, then it's a mandate to the city council to go forward with this," he said. "It's a serious health issue."

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ASUW approves campuswide smoking ban  

The Associated Students of the University of Wyoming (ASUW) Senate approved Tuesday a resolution that bans smoking on the University of Wyoming campus, but UW students and staff who smoke will have at least a year before the policy is implemented.

Resolution 2321 must go to the UW Board of Trustees before being enacted. The soonest the board will be able to consider the policy will be during their regular meeting in November, Megan Degenfelder, ASUW president and student representative on the board of trustees, said at an ASUW meeting Tuesday.

"Something like this, probably, isn't going to happen very quickly … Maybe by the end of the year they will bring it up for vote, but it all depends. They can table it as long as they want. Nothing will change until they vote on that. My best guess is … that it wouldn't be until this spring," she said.

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LETTER: Not taking anyone's 'rights' 

As a business owner and attorney, I had to think about what "rights" we are talking about. In order for us as business owners to have a "right" it must be based in the law. After scouring Wyoming law, I am unable to find one that gives business owners a "right" to allow smoking in their establishment. . . .

Our local and state officials have a long history of passing health and safety legislation. For example, if I am a business owner that has a building that meets certain occupancy requirements, I must, as a matter of law, install a fire suppression sprinkler system to protect employees and patrons . . .

The bottom line is the research unanimously supports the fact that smoke-free policies eliminate the health threats patrons and employees face in businesses where smoking is allowed. Secondhand smoke has been proven to cause heart disease, lung, cancer, respiratory illness, severe asthma attacks and more. Local city councils can and should pass a law with a clear conscience that they are not taking away anyone's legal "right" to allow smoking in their place of business with all the benefit of protecting the health of Natrona County's citizens.

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• Loss of student scholarship money concerns college rodeo officials 

The once steadfast coupling of chewing tobacco and the collegiate cowboy extravaganza is no more. There are no Copenhagen banners, there are no Skoal flags. There are no free samples.

For the first time in nearly four decades, smokeless tobacco has no hand in sponsoring the College National Finals Rodeo.

“It’s a tremendous and tragic loss to college rodeo,” National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Commissioner Roger Walters said during the weeklong 2011 CNFR, which ended Saturday night at the Casper Events Center. “Who lost? Our students.”

For 37 years, U.S. Smokeless Tobacco gave hundreds of thousands of dollars in the form of scholarships to college rodeo. While the presence of the company’s banners and flags at the CNFR ceased in 2009, the company — acquired by Altria that same year — continued giving scholarship money through last year.

Walters said the company, in a time of economic hardship, gave roughly $250,000 in scholarships each year to college rodeo performers. The sponsorship pull-out by the company, he said, constituted an 80 to 85 percent loss in money available for the performers.

“I understand the reasons [for their departure], but in the long run, it hurts our students,” he said. “And that’s what this rodeo is for, first and foremost.” Health officials, however, applauded the move

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It’s a tremendous and tragic loss to college rodeo. Who lost? Our students.
National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Commissioner Roger Walters on the loss of UST sponsorship of the College National Finals Rodeo.