JoeCherner-announce

Editorial: Arizona Daily Star
October 22, 2006

Prop. 201: YES Prop. 206: NO 
Smoke-free public places 

The Smoke-Free Arizona Act measure, Prop. 201, would prohibit smoking in all
public indoor places and work sites, with exceptions for tobacco shops, patios
at bars and restaurants, private veterans and fraternal clubs, American Indian
ceremonies and designated hotel rooms. Funding to enforce the measure would come
from an additional 2-cent-a-pack tax on cigarettes. 

We believe the public good is served by protecting the health of the majority,
nonsmoking segment of the citizenry from the known harmful effects of secondhand
smoke. 

Richard Carmona, the former U.S. surgeon general and a Tucsonan, concluded this
summer that secondhand smoke is estimated to cause 35,000 to 45,000 deaths each
year from heart disease and 3,000 deaths from lung cancer among nonsmokers in
the United States. His final report before leaving office in July also found
that nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work have an increased
risk, up to 30 percent, for both heart disease and lung cancer. 
The surgeon general also concluded that secondhand smoke may cause or contribute
to sudden infant death syndrome, acute respiratory infections, ear problems and
more frequent and severe asthma attacks in children. Even brief exposure to
secondhand smoke can be dangerous. 

Prop. 201 is a business issue. Many businesses where smoking is permitted have
chosen not to provide their workers with a safe environment. The servers,
bartenders and musicians who make a living in clubs and bars deserve the same
smoke-free workplace that hundreds of thousands of workers already enjoy. 

Prop. 201 may have an economic impact on small bars that don't have patios or
the means to build them. About 20 bars closed in Tempe when that city outlawed
bar smoking in 2002. Smoke-free restaurants, bars and music venues will likely
replace closed bars, however. 

Passage of Prop. 201 would be beneficial for the public in the long term. It
holds the opportunity that more members of our community will live longer,
healthier lives if they are not regularly exposed to secondhand smoke. 

Prop. 206, the Arizona Non-Smoker Protection Act, also would prohibit smoking in
all public indoor places and work sites, with notable exemptions: free-standing
bars and bar areas that are closed off and separately ventilated from adjacent
nonsmoking areas. 

Prop. 206 deserves a "no" vote. If both Prop. 201 and Prop. 206 pass, the
measure with more votes becomes law. 
We believe secondhand smoke is a real health threat. Nonsmoking bar patrons and
workers shouldn't be regularly exposed to secondhand smoke that could damage
their health. 

A key drawback in Prop. 206 is that it would pre-empt local ordinances related
to bars and retail tobacco stores, including those that have worked successfully
in our community. No community would be allowed to enact smoking laws stricter
than Prop. 206. 

Prop. 206 was created, we believe, as a way to confuse voters and lessen Prop.
201's chances of passing.