Categories
· Smokefree Policies
· Ethics
· Outdoors
USA, by State
· California
|
But councilman balks at 'conflict of interest' claims
Jump to full article: North County (CA) Times, 2009-06-23
Author: DAVID GARRICK
Intro: With the City Council slated Wednesday to consider a ban on smoking in Escondido parks, a community activist has called on Councilman Sam Abed to remove himself from the debate because Abed owns a gas station that sells cigarettes.
"It's a pretty big conflict of interest for him to sell cigarettes all day and then vote against banning them from parks," said Danny Perez, a longtime community activist in Escondido.
But Abed, a longtime opponent of smoking bans, said Monday that there is no conflict of interest because cigarette sales make up less than 2 percent of the $10,000 in gross revenue his Mobil service station generates on a typical day.
City Attorney Jeff Epp agreed.
"As I understand it, they are a very minor part of his business," Epp said Monday.
Jump to full article » |