http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/state/NV.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.krnv.com/Global/story.asp?S=8627409 http://tobacco.org/news/268407.html Unlike their counterparts in Las Vegas, nearly every Reno-area business owner is complying with a statewide smoking ban that took effect in December 2006. That's the word from Washoe District Health Department officials, who report a 98 percent compliance rate and fewer than 10 establishments that have caused trouble. AP Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/travel/2008030942_trvegassmoke06.html http://tobacco.org/news/268350.html In the casino realm, though, gambling and smoke go together like showgirls and sequins. And while Luvisutto predicts "it's only a matter of time" before Vegas casinos adopt their own smoking ban, in the meantime they're concentrating on protecting the health of their employees — and their customers. For example, all poker rooms in the 10 MGM-Mirage hotels — running the gambling gamut from Bellagio to Circus Circus — are nonsmoking, said Cindy Ortega, MGM-Mirage's senior vice president of energy and environmental services. "They were the first in the city, and we had assumed people were going to complain, but there were not any complaints registered at all," she said. The company also emphasizes "pathing," so nonsmokers can go around, rather than through, casino floors, Ortega said. And at Bellagio, they're testing a system called Air Rail that creates an "air curtain" through the gaming table to shield the dealer from smoke. . . . Sounds promising, but the proof is in the proboscis. So I inhaled some of the Strip's newer casinos (Handel specifically mentioned the Wynn Las Vegas, Bellagio, Palazzo Las Vegas, the Venetian and Mandalay Bay), along with some old standbys for comparison. . . . here is my completely nonscientific scent-o-smoke scale, from 1 cigarette (quite tolerable) to 5 (Run away! Run away!): (4 cigs) MGM Grand: We approached the casino from the shops — and were stopped by a sudden, unmistakable wall of smoke about 100 feet from the entrance. We turned around. (2 cigs) Wynn Las Vegas: Not bad at all around the casino edges, though it did thicken deeper in. Blasts of fresh air from the restaurants lining the perimeter give you a little breathing room, and my mom and aunts said they felt mysterious but welcome "puffs" of refreshing air at their slot machines every now and then. (1 cig) The Palazzo Las Vegas . . . (5 cigs) Caesars Palace: Et tu, Vegas landmark? This was the worst casino of all, even at 11 a.m. . . . Seattle Times webmaster@seattletimes.com (Sandy Dunham Special to The Seattle Times ) Sun, 06 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/jun/25/smoke/ http://tobacco.org/news/268257.html Last time we checked, 54 percent was considered a voting majority. That was the percentage of support the Clean Indoor Air Act received when it was approved by Nevada voters in November 2006. . . . We were disappointed when District Court Judge Douglas Herndon subsequently removed the criminal penalties from the initiative, which was backed by prominent health organizations such as the American Cancer Society. We are even more perturbed to learn that the will of the people is being ignored because the Southern Nevada Health District and local courts cannot find a way to issue even $100 civil penalties for violations, as permitted under the law. . . . Ask those who have lost loved ones to lung cancer or heart failure. The Clean Indoor Air Act was not a frivolous exercise to test the power of the ballot initiative process. It represented a sincere effort to help people live longer lives. Las Vegas Sun Wed, 25 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/jun/25/nevadas-smoking-law-unfair-taverns/ http://tobacco.org/news/268256.html I read with interest your Saturday story on Nevada’s smoking law, which restricts smoking in public places, including taverns. This unconstitutional, anti-business law was marketed to the Nevada public by very slick snake oil salesmen. We were given the idea that we had to pick one ballot question or the other when in fact a “no” vote for both of them would have stopped this absurd law in its tracks. Las Vegas Sun Wed, 25 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/jul/04/ban-not-snuffing-out-smoking-in-nevada-bars/ http://tobacco.org/news/268254.html Dozens of establishments across the Las Vegas area ignore the ban, known as the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act. Among other places, the ban prohibits smoking in bars and taverns that serve food. Over the past 18 months, 4,022 complaints have been made to the Southern Nevada Health District. None has resulted in citations. Nobody has ever had to pay the $100 fine for smoking a cigarette indoors in Clark County. That's partly because no court is accepting the citations. AP Fri, 04 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.krnv.com/Global/story.asp?S=8582591&nav=1Pus http://tobacco.org/news/268093.html KRNV News 4 Thu, 03 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.krnv.com/Global/story.asp?S=8568523&nav=menu113_2 http://tobacco.org/news/267764.html The process of applying for benefits could become more difficult if tobacco funding is used to secure bonds to balance the state budget, citing the plan a short term fix lawmakers say. Lt. Governor Brian Krolicki's plan to use tobacco settlement money instead of having to make major cuts to the budget is considered a short term fix by lawmakers because today's programs that receive tobacco bonds say the plan is poor social and fiscal policy that will cost more money in the long run. KRNV News 4 Sat, 28 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/G/GREEN_CASINOS?SITE=WSAW&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT http://tobacco.org/news/267593.html Even in an industry closely identified with devil-may-care gluttony, going green makes business sense as consumers increasingly demand sustainable products and services . . . The trend is reaching even casinos in Las Vegas, long criticized by environmentalists for its extravagant use of natural resources. In April, the Palazzo Las Vegas resort became the world's largest building project to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certificate from the U.S. Green Building Council. . . . Casinos typically face a big obstacle to LEED certification: the need to satisfy customers who smoke. LEED requires separate smoking areas and systems to contain and remove smoke and monitor air quality, said Ashley Katz, spokeswoman for the green building council. Absher said those requirements make the casino the only section of the 76-acre, mixed-use CityCenter project that MGM doesn't expect will qualify for LEED certification, despite the casino's other sustainable features. "We will meet all the other standards," he said. "But we cannot overcome this. Smoking is something that is very important to our customer base at this point." It's especially hard to limit tobacco use in a tribal casino, given its iconic status in American Indian culture. But Turtle Creek developers tried to do the next best thing by installing a purifying system. AP Wed, 25 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.gethealthyclarkcounty.org/tobacco/ques5.html http://tobacco.org/news/267378.html Faced with competing initiatives on smoking bans in public places, Nevadans voted on November 7, 2006 to enact the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act (Question 5) in order to protect themselves and their families from the dangers of secondhand smoke. Question 5 received over 54 percent of the vote and became law on December 8, 2006. The Act states that smoking tobacco in any form is prohibited within indoor places of employment including: * Public and private school buildings and on public and private school grounds * Child care facilities with five or more children Southern Nevada Health District Sat, 21 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/jun/21/smoking-ban-not-doing-all-banning-its-sponsors-hop/ http://tobacco.org/news/267377.html Two years ago — when the economy was humming along fine and nobody was getting hepatitis C from a colonoscopy — Nevada’s proposed indoor smoking ban was front-page news. The measure, passed by voters statewide, took effect in early 2007. But drive around town and it’s still easy to find a place to smoke cigarettes. Dozens of establishments across the Las Vegas Valley continue to ignore the ban, known as the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act. . . . Over the past 18 months, 4,022 complaints have been made to the Southern Nevada Health District. And how many resulted in citations? Nil. None. Zero. . . . nobody has ever had to pay the $100 fine for smoking a cigarette indoors in Clark County. That’s partly because no court is accepting the citations. And so, for now, no one is issuing them. The Health District is working with local justice courts, hoping they soon will accept the citations. “There’s no place to have hearings,” said Stephen Minagil, an attorney for the Southern Nevada Health District. “We’re ready to write citations. We’re just waiting to hear how the justice court wants to handle them.” That’s only one of several ongoing dramas that have seemingly made many places nonsmoking only if the bar owners feel like obeying on that particular day. Las Vegas Sun Sat, 21 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2008/05/28/news/iq_21673553.txt http://tobacco.org/news/266100.html The latest attempt at crafting smoking ban regulations may be dropped or put in limbo until the constitutionality of the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act is decided, a state Division of Health official said. The protests of some 40 bar operators, their attorneys and lobbyists at a hearing earlier this month on the suggested smoking rules gave the state "pause" on what the next step should be, said Daren Winkelman, the division's environmental health specialist. He now puts the odds of implementing the new rules, which were drafted with the aid of various county health departments, at "about 50-50." "We will definitely convene a meeting with them," Winkelman said of the Southern Nevada Health District, the Washoe County Health District and the Carson City Health and Human Services Division. . . . If approved by the Nevada Board of Health, new smoking regulations would redefine what constitutes a tobacco shop, impose penalties on take-out restaurants for delivering food inside smoking bars and threaten violators with permit revocation. Proprietors of nonsmoking bars would also be required to enforce the ban on customers. Las Vegas Business Press vmiller@lvbusinesspress.com (VALERIE MILLER) Wed, 28 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080525/BIZ/805250345 http://tobacco.org/news/265873.html The restaurant business in Nevada has seen a decline in taxable sales 19 of the past 20 months, and the smoking ban and minimum wage increase contributed to those declines. Gaming revenues at many bars and convenience stores are down by about 30 percent, while several taverns have simply closed their doors. What we voters didn't understand is that the revenue from gaming helped these small stores and restaurants pay their staff and keep food and drink prices down. As gaming revenue declines, food prices will go up, and staff will be fired. . . . This trend has to stop. But the only way it will is if business leaders and business owners get more involved. Meet with your legislators to tell them of your concerns. Join your state association. Visit www.nevadaprosperity.org to learn how to get more involved. Businesses better start playing the game that the labor unions have been playing for decades, educate your employees and get them to vote. If you don't, we will continue to see initiatives that hurt business, which hurts us. Reno Gazette-Journal randithompson@sbcglobal.net (Randi Thompson) Sun, 25 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.ktvn.com/Global/story.asp?S=8355866&nav=menu549_2 http://tobacco.org/news/265751.html Firefighters say a cigarette is to blame for an afternoon brush fire in Spanish Springs. The two acre blaze broke out just before 3pm near Highland and at one point shut down a portion of Pyramid Highway. About a dozen firefighters fought the blaze. KTVN Thu, 22 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/05-07-2008/0004808532&EDATE= http://tobacco.org/news/264878.html Ruyan America, Inc., Minneapolis, announced today that its products won two of the six awards presented at the 2008 Tobacco Plus Expo held at the Las Vegas Convention Center April 24th and 25th. The Company's E-cigarette was named 2008 Most Innovative Product and its Ruyan Vegas E-cigar was named Most Marketable New Product of the Year. Both products are cigarette alternatives/smoking substitutes that allow users to satisfy their cravings for nicotine in places and situations where they otherwise cannot smoke. The Ruyan E-cigarette and the Ruyan Vegas E-cigar use ultrasonic atomization technology to create nicotine infused water vapor that users draw as if it were smoke. Additionally, the products allow users to effectively simulate the physiological and psychological attributes of smoking without creating any harmful second hand smoke. Donald J. Bores, Chairman of Tobacco Outlet Business magazine, one of the Expo's sponsors, stated, "The Ruyan products represent a great opportunity for tobacco retailers to expand their product offerings, provide their customers with convenient smoking alternatives and allow them to choose when and where they are able to satisfy their desire to smoke PR Newswire billb@ruyanamerica.com (SOURCE Ruyan America, Inc.) Wed, 07 May 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.csnews.com/csn/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003795013&imw=Y http://tobacco.org/news/264323.html For a preview of the next hot tobacco products to hit convenience store shelves, the place to be last week was the Tobacco Plus Expo here. The Expo, which bills itself as the largest tobacco-focused show in the U.S., drew owners and operators representing the nation's approximately 12,000 tobacco outlets. The show floor featured more than 180 exhibitors with a wide range of products, from the traditional new flavors and sizes of cigarettes, cigars and smokeless tobacco to myriad specialty items and accessories including hookahs, glass pipes, humidors, cigarette cases, cigar cutters, candles and incense. The event was kicked off Wednesday evening by the NATO (National Association of Tobacco Outlets) Awards Dinner, followed the next morning by an educational program headlined by Convenience Store News Editor-in-Chief Don Longo and NATO President Andy Kerstein. In the first presentation, Longo teamed up with Mike Kirkwood, executive vice president, Tobacco Outlet Magazine, to provide attendees with a comparison of the convenience store and tobacco outlet channels. Convenience Store News Wed, 30 Apr 2008 04:00:00 GMT