Jump to full article: Greeley (CO) Tribune, 2008-04-23
Author: Andrew Villegas
Intro: U.S. Smokeless Tobacco has pulled its sponsorship of the Greeley Stampede and with it a $200,000 scoreboard after Greeley officials decided late last year to ban free sampling of tobacco in the city.
The Greeley City Council passed a citywide ban on the free distribution of tobacco in early December on a contentious 4-3 vote. Opponents of the ban said government shouldn't take the choice to use tobacco out of the public's hands, but proponents insisted that a ban was necessary to protect the health of the public.
Denver and Boulder have similar bans on the free distribution of tobacco as do 390 communities around the nation. But UST still sponsors and is allowed to provide free samples at the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo. It also sponsors the Cheyenne Frontier Days. . . .
Andrew Lee, spokesman for U.S. Smokeless Tobacco said in December that the company "prefers to sponsor events that allow sampling."
Greeley Mayor Ed Clark, who voted against the tobacco sampling ban in December, said Greeley has to support the Stampede after the Council banned tobacco giveaways.
"I think we owe them at least 2,000 bucks," Clark said.
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