Tobacco.org

Restaurant owners sue council over smoking ban 

County restaurateurs filed a lawsuit in Circuit Court on Monday challenging the county's ban on smoking scheduled to take effect in less than one month.

The restaurants claim that because the ban has an exception for private clubs it violates the equal protection clause of the Maryland Constitution, a position the court agreed with when restaurants challenged a nearly identical ban in 1999. The legislation passed by the County Council in July instructs the court to initate a full ban with no exeptions if the exception renders the ban unconstitutional, but the restaurants argue that state law prohibits counties from banning smoking in private clubs.

Aside from the legal issues at stake, the businesses argued that a total ban on smoking in bars and restaurants would cause smoking patrons to leave the county for neighboring jurisdictions where it is permitted. . .

The restaurants have formed a nonprofit Customer Choice Coalition to help pay for the lawsuit. The principal parties in the suit are Clyde's and the Anchor Inn Seafood Restaurant in Wheaton, businesses that installed expensive air ventilation systems to filter out smoke. Melvin R. Thompson, vice president of government relations for the Restaurant Association of Maryland, said the tobacco industry would not be participating in the lawsuit as it had in 1999. He said more groups will join the coalition, but their identities would not be released.

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