By MARSHA SHULER
Capitol news bureau
Published: Jun 16, 2006

Story originally published in The Advocate

Restaurants across Louisiana would become smoke-free, with patrons not even allowed to light up in the establishments’ bars, under a bill approved Thursday by the Louisiana House.

All that stands in the way of the smoking ban going to the governor’s desk is Senate concurrence in the House version.

The House voted 58-33 for Senate Bill 742.

The “Louisiana Clean Indoor Air Act” would ban smoking in restaurants, banks, health-care facilities, hotel-motel lobbies, public transportation, sports arenas, theaters and shopping malls.

SB742 contains exceptions for casinos and bars. Up to 50 percent of hotel-motel rooms could be reserved for smoking guests.

Rep. William Daniel, R-Baton Rouge, said second-hand smoke is “one of the worst problems we have from a medical standpoint.”

Daniel said 75 percent of Louisiana residents do not smoke. But the nonsmokers pay millions of dollars in health-care costs of those who do smoke.

House members eliminated a provision in SB742 that would have allowed smoking in enclosed restaurant bars.

The bill’s author, Sen. Rob Marionneaux, D-Gross Tete, said he is “cautiously optimistic” that senators will go along with changes the House made.

Supporters in the House batted aside a raft of proposed changes to the bill that would have:

• Allowed restaurants to continue separate dining rooms for smokers.
• Struck down local government ordinances that are stronger than the statewide ban.
• Forbidden smoking in casinos.
• Allowed restaurants to decide to go smoke-free.

Rep Hunter Greene, R-Baton Rouge, argued restaurants should make their own decisions on whether to allow smoking.

Rep. Ernest Wooten, R-Belle Chasse, said people don’t have to go to restaurants filled with smoke and employees don’t have to work there either.

“Some people don’t have a choice where they work. Why should they be exposed to health risks?” Daniel replied. “This bill is about protecting workers and people in restaurants. No one should have to breath second-hand smoke.”

Rep Michael Jackson, D-Baton Rouge, said the focus should be on public health rather than business concerns.

“This is an issue about our people being subjected to second-hand smoke,” said Jackson. People who breath in someone else’s smoke are exposed to a Class A carcinogen that causes cancer and is also associated with bronchitis, heart disease, lung disease, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and low birth-weight babies.

“We can sit around and debate the impact on business all day long, but this is a health-care issue,” Jackson said.

Rep. Gordon Dove, D-Houma, asked the House to allow restaurants to have a separate dining room just for smokers.

The proposal would have required the area to be totally closed off with a separate air conditioning and a smoke inhibitor apparatus.

Dove said it would help “Mom and Pop” restaurants keep their long-time clientele.

“We can’t line smokers up and shoot them,” said Dove, a restaurant owner. “We have to do something for smokers here.”

Daniel objected, saying the proposal would create an “uneven playing field,” cause enforcement problems and continue to expose workers to unhealthy second-hand smoke.

Rep Jack Smith, D-Stephensville, asked the House to agree that no local ordinance could be stricter than the statewide standard being set. Otherwise, he said, “No one will know what the rules are because there will be separate ordinances throughout the state.”

Daniel said some communities have stricter smoking bans than those proposed in the legislation and they should be allowed to stand. “We are establishing across-the-state minimum standards,” he said.

After rejecting the series of amendments that Daniel said would have gutted the legislation, the House narrowly approved SB742. Smoking ban offenders would be subject to penalties.

A first offense would bring a $25 fine, a second offense $50 and a third offense $100. Employers who failed to police the ban could be exposed to fines of $100 for first offense, $250 for a second offense and $500 for a third.

Here’s how the House voted Thursday when it approved Senate Bill 742 — the Louisiana Indoor Clean Air Act.

FOR the smoking ban (58) — Speaker Salter and Reps. Alario, Badon, Baudoin, Baylor, Beard, Bruce, Burns, Burrell, K. Carter, R. Carter, Cazayoux, Chandler, Crane, Cravins, Crowe, Curtis, Daniel, DeWitt, Doerge, Dorsey, Downs, Erdey, Fannin, Farrar, Faucheux, Frith, Gallot, Gray, E. Guillory, M. Guillory, Hill, Hunter, Hutter, Jackson, Katz, Kenney, LaBruzzo, LaFonta, Lambert, Marchand, McDonald, McVea, Montgomery, Pinac, M. Powell, Quezaire, Schneider, Smiley, G. Smith, J.H. Smith, Thompson, Toomy, Townsend, Waddell, Walker, Walsworth and White.

AGAINST the smoking ban (33) — Reps. Alexander, Ansardi, Arnold, Bowler, Bruneau, Damico, Dartez, Dove, Durand, Greene, Hammett, Honey, Hopkins, Johns, Kleckley, Lancaster, Martiny, Morrish, Odinet, Pierre, Pitre, Richmond, Ritchie, Robideaux, Romero, Scalise, J.D. Smith, J.R. Smith, St. Germain, Strain, Trahan, Tucker and Wooten.

NOT VOTING (13) — Reps. Baldone, Barrow, Geymann, Glover, Harris, Heaton, Hebert, Jefferson, Kennard, LaFleur, T. Powell, Triche and Winston.



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