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EDITORIAL: State smoking ban 

Hutchinson has had a citywide smoking ban in some public places that seemingly has worked flawlessly. Now, a ban that would cover the whole state would pre-empt Hutchinson's ordinance.

Hutchinson exemplifies why the statewide measure is too far-reaching. And like 35 other cities and three counties in Kansas, Hutchinson shows how this issue already was being handled just fine on a local level. . . .

From Hutchinson's perspective, this bill goes too far. That is because Hutchinson's ordinance, enacted in 2004, basically is just a restaurant smoking ban. The new state law will extinguish smoking in bars, too.

Hutchinson's ordinance has worked well. Restaurants always have been the chief concern, and with provisions for bars to allow smoking, the city has struck a good balance between people who like to dine out in a smoke-free atmosphere and bar owners who say that much of their clientele smokes. Basically, people in Hutchinson can choose between smoke-free and smoking-permitted establishments.The state seems late to the party with a law at this stage - and with a law that seems especially unwanted in cities like Hutchinson where locals had the foresight to debate this issue years ago and the self-confidence and local knowledge to legislate an effective prohibition locally.

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