Policy

State

Faith leaders lobby at statehouse for smoking ban (IN)
Faith leaders are joining the fight to pass a stronger smoke-free law in Indiana. Faith leaders gathered at the Indiana Statehouse for an organized rally to show their support for the proposed smoke-free legislation. To represent the 1,200 lives lost in Indiana each year due to secondhand smoke, demonstrators filled six-hundred white bags with battery operated votive candles in the shape of a cigarette with a strike through it. Last month, the Indiana House passed a weakened version of a smoking ban that allowed exemptions for bars and casinos. Proponents of the bill are hoping that the Senate will pass a more comprehensive smoking ban. Click here to read more. Faith leaders in many other states have also been showing their support for smoking bans. Click here to read about similar efforts by faith leaders in Iowa.

The economic impact of smoke-free policies on business and health (IN)
Policy researchers from Indiana University have assembled a report on the economic and health impacts of smoke-free policies based on a review of scientific research and case studies. The report concludes that smoke-free laws protect workers’ health, reduce healthcare and maintenance costs, and do not harm business earnings. The report was supported by a grant from Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation. A bill is currently being introduced in the Indiana Senate Commerce Committee that would ban smoking in nearly all public places, except bars and casinos. The data in this report provides a strong argument for a more comprehensive ban that would restrict smoking in all workplaces. Click here to read more. Click here to download the report.

Smoking ban clears first hurdle: House committee supports measure (NC)
North Carolina House Majority Leader Hugh Holliman’s proposal for a smoke-free bill has been approved by the House Health Committee. The bill would forbid smoking in restaurants, bars, workplaces and the majority of indoor public venues. Hotels would also be required to designate 80% of their rooms as nonsmoking. This is the first step for the state’s workplaces to move towards a smoke-free environment to protect workers and customers from secondhand smoke. This legislation is receiving significantly more support among legislators than a similar bill in 2007 that targeted restaurants and bars. The comprehensive nature of the proposed bill covers almost all public places. Many members of the N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association are more receptive to the proposal because virtually all workplaces will be subject to uniform smoking restrictions. Click here to read more. Update:  Smoking ban clears key committee The bill cleared the House Judiciary Committee, and is expected to reach the House for a floor vote by early April. Find out more here.

South Dakota becomes 24th state to meet American Lung Association Smoke-free Air Challenge by passing legislation protecting all workers from secondhand smoke (SD)
South Dakota became the first state to pass a comprehensive smoke-free workplace law in 2009. The new smoke-free legislation passed with a bipartisan majority. The new ban, set to be enforced beginning July 1, will protect virtually all workers from secondhand smoke in public places and worksites. The American Lung Association worked tirelessly as part of the South Dakota Tobacco Free Kids Network to show a strong grassroots support of the ban. Supporters will be called upon to help implement the ban in July. Click here to read more. Click here to read a statement about the ban by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Did lawmakers follow the will of the people? Emails and calls helped shape the tenor of the session (UT)
Legislators in Utah were shocked at the response from the public to a proposed measure that would strip $4 million from tobacco cessation programs. Supporters of tobacco cessation programs were so vocal in contacting their state representatives that instead of simply letting the bill fade away, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Ron Bigelow, made a motion to kill the bill. Bigelow wanted his constituents to know that legislators had listened to their emails and restored the tobacco cessation funding. The legislature was not able to fulfill all of the public’s tobacco control wishes, however. While 66% of voters in a Salt Lake City newspaper poll supported a 70-cent cigarette tax increase, lawmakers chose to instead raise vehicle registration fees. Click here to read more.

Kaine signs restaurant-bar smoking ban legislation (VA)
Governor Timothy Kaine signed new legislation that was passed last month to ban smoking in almost all public places in the state of Virginia. The law will go into effect on December 1, 2009. The ban is a big step for the state, although it is not as comprehensive as initially intended. The law allows exemptions for private clubs and restaurants that establish separate and independently ventilated smoking rooms. Click here to read more.

Governor Doyle: Statewide smoking ban ‘very doable’ (WI)
Wisconsin Governor James Doyle has been fighting for a statewide smoking ban for over two years, and while he will not guarantee that it will be enacted in 2009, he is optimistic. Doyle says that from what he has seen, statewide bans do not negatively impact businesses and it would solve issues that are created for local cities that have bans but are adjacent to cities that do not. The Governor’s budget proposal includes a 75 cent per pack increase to the state cigarette tax. Click here to read more.

Smoke-free advocates launch new statewide campaign and interactive website in support of statewide smoke-free law (WI)
Members of an alliance of 27 health, medical, business and civic organizations in Wisconsin held a kickoff for their new campaign for a statewide smoke-free law, “Holding Our Breath for a Smoke-Free Air.” Key features of the campaign include town hall meetings, legislative visits and an interactive website. The website, designed to engage and invigorate the public, allows supporters to view and post video messages that are sent directly to lawmakers, sign a petition, view and read other supporters narrative and video messages, and view a real-time clock that is keeping track of how long Wisconsin has waited for the passage of a statewide smoke-free law starting from the campaign kickoff. Click here to visit the campaign’s website.

National

The strategic dialogue on tobacco harm reduction: A vision and blueprint for action in the United States
A group of 26 tobacco control experts convened over the course of two years to develop policy recommendations to decrease the prevalence of cigarette smoking, and to outline measures to minimize health risks among smokers who are unable or unwilling to quit smoking. Their recommendations include tighter regulation of tobacco promotions and advertising, regulation of harmful ingredients in tobacco products, accurate public education on the relative risks of different types of tobacco, and prohibiting scientifically-unfounded claims regarding risk-reduction tobacco products. The Dialogue was jointly funded by the American Legacy Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Minnesota Tobacco Use Research Center. Click here to read the recommendations from the Dialogue in the journal Tobacco Control, or click here to read a related news release.

House panel approves FDA tobacco oversight
With a 39-13 House committee vote on March 4, Congress has moved one step closer to authorizing the Food and Drug Administration to regulate the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco products. While the bill is expected to pass the House, a tougher battle is expected in the Senate. The bill will tighten regulation of the tobacco industry, but critics question the capacity of the FDA to take on such a large regulatory burden. Read more here. Click here to read a statement from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids urging the House and Senate to pass this bill. Click here to view the bill that was introduced to the House.

FDA hazy on e-cigarettes' safety
The e-cigarette, a device that delivers a dose of nicotine without giving off smoke, has gained popularity as more states pass smoke-free laws. Although e-cigarettes can be found in mall kiosks across the country, the technology has not been proven safe and is not FDA-approved. There is also a lack of evidence to support advertising claims that the device promotes smoking cessation. The FDA is blocking importation of e-cigarettes, but has not stopped sales of devices that are already in the U.S. Click here for more information. Click here to view Senator Frank Lautenberg’s (D-N.J.) press release urging the FDA to remove electronic cigarettes from the market until proven safe. Click here to read a joint statement from the American Cancer Society, Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids supporting Sen. Lautenberg’s call for removing e-cigarettes from the market.

Policy statements-American Legacy Foundation
The American Legacy Foundation has developed concise Policy Statements on various positions the Foundation has taken on important tobacco control issues. PDFs on the following topics can be downloaded from the Legacy website: CDC Minimum Investment; Clean Indoor Air in Workplaces and Public Accommodations; Excise Taxes; Youth Media Campaigns; Smoking Cessation; and Smoking in the Movies. Additional data, facts, and publications on these topics are available in the Research section of the Legacy website. New Policy Briefs will be added over time. Click here to read the American Legacy Foundation’s stance on several key tobacco policy issues.

International

Beijing hospitals begin to control smoking (China)
Clinicians and health care workers from seven major hospitals in Beijing have until January 2010 to control their cigarette smoking. The hospitals are working towards a 100% smoke-free environment. To prepare, they are placing signs in visible areas advising workers and patrons not to smoke and enlisting inspectors to stop smokers from breaking the new rules. Each hospital is setting up smoking control technology and a mental support team for individuals trying to quit smoking. Each hospital has until March 20, 2009 to set up smoking control review and penalty rules. Click here to read more.

Push for total ban on smoking (Australia)
Former health minister Jim McGinty, has introduced a radical proposal in Australia to completely ban cigarettes and all tobacco products within 10 to 15 years. This proposal has garnered support from many major health groups. A recent investigation by the parliamentary committee found that tobacco bans had extensive scientific evidence in support of the benefits and broad community support. Several other proposals currently awaiting decisions are laws that would ban tobacco displays in shops, forbid smoking in vehicles carrying children under 17, ban smoking at playgrounds, within five meters of a public entrance, and within ‘safe swimming areas’ at public beaches. Click here to read more.

Japan may tighten smoking rules: official
Japan may strengthen its smoke-free laws by eliminating smoking areas in many public establishments including hospitals, government offices, and public transportation. Officials are unlikely to make restaurants smoke-free, however. Click here for more information. Click here to read facts and figures on smoking in Japan, which is the number four consumer of cigarettes in the world, according to newly released data from the American Cancer Society.

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