Jump to full article: The Daily Cardinal (University of Wisconsin, Madison), 2002-10-02
Intro: Smokers will have another two weeks to light up at their favorite establishments after the City Council referred a controversial proposal to its next meeting after nearly two hours of public input.
Dozens of Madison restaurant and bar owners arrived at the meeting to protest the ordinance, which would have banned smoking in such establishments altogether. Many said the first proposal was too cut and dry.
According to a new compromise proposal, smoking would be eliminated before 9 p.m. in establishments with 50 percent or less alcohol sales. . .
However, the new law would not resolve a big concern for anti-smoking advocates: how secondhand smoke affects bar and restaurant employees.
A coalition of health groups, including the University of Wisconsin Health Services, UW Hospital and Clinics and the UW Medical Foundation formed last week to show their support for the ban.
"Many UW-Madison students work in restaurants and bars," Kathy Poi, executive director of UW Health Services, said in an earlier statement. "Students exposed to secondhand smoke are more vulnerable to respiratory illnesses."
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