Thursday, Sep. 03, 2009

Officials must resist calls to relax smoking bans

IT NEVER SHOULD have been on the table in the first place, but it was good to see Richland County Council reject a misguided effort to weaken the county’s smoking ban.

The council responded emphatically Tuesday in killing a proposal that would have allowed any establishment to operate “a portion of its workplace” as a “designated smoking area” as long as that area is separate from its nonsmoking area and has its own outside entrance and a separate heating and air system. It also would have allowed some employees to work in smoking areas. While the proposal’s chief proponent, Councilman Jim Manning, said workers would have to volunteer to work in smoking areas, there’s little doubt people would have been forced to choose between their health and a job.

Fortunately, the council saw the error of making such a change that, while reportedly aimed at addressing concerns of a single bingo operator, would have opened the door to all businesses, including bars and restaurants. Council members didn’t even hold a planned public hearing before summarily nixing the proposal.

We commend anti-smoking advocates for their vigilance in opposing this proposal. It wasn’t sufficiently vetted publicly and might have become law had it not been for their intervention. It received the two of three required positive votes from the council without any public hearing.

There will be other attempts to subvert not only Richland’s smoking ban but those in other jurisdictions, particularly Lexington County, as well. There is pressure on the town of Lexington to relax its toughest-in-the-region ban, which not only bans indoor workplace smoking but prohibits employees from serving patrons smoking on outside decks and patios. But the town must stand firm; as a matter of fact, other cities and counties should adopt its ordinance. Lexington County Council, which adopted a tough ban last week after a year and a half of wrangling, should be prepared for attempts to get it to ease up as well.

With Lexington County finally taking action to protect workers from unnecessary exposure to carcinogens, its towns and cities — from West Columbia and Cayce to Irmo and, yes, Springdale and Chapin — also should adopt smoking bans. Those who claimed to be waiting for the County Council to act no longer have that excuse.

While any smoking ban is better than none, it’s imperative that these cities and towns adopt more than minimal protections. They should all adopt the same or similar bans that would eliminate secondhand smoke in workplaces. A uniform effort would go a long way to safe-guarding communitywide public health.

The primary reason for approving the bans is to protect workers from secondhand smoke that the U.S. surgeon general has declared to be a serious hazard. But it also would create a level playing field for businesses by addressing concerns that patrons might leave an establishment in a jurisdiction that bans smoking to spend money at bars and restaurants and bingo halls where smoking is allowed.

Local governments shouldn’t waste any time in approving bans to protect workers. That said, this isn’t the best route. The more prudent and effective way to guard all South Carolinians against harm that can be caused by secondhand smoke would be for the Legislature to develop the courage to pass and defend a strong statewide ban. There is simply no good reason for our legislators not to require this minimal level of workplace safety for all of South Carolina’s workers.

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