Smoking ban bill weakening
Kaine’s proposed smoking ban took a bit of a hit today in the Virginia House. The new bill will allow smoking in any establishment where minors are not present, and apparently the governor isn’t too happy with it… From the TD: “The health of adults is important, too,” the governor said. “It’s not a minor’s […]
Kaine’s proposed smoking ban took a bit of a hit today in the Virginia House.
The new bill will allow smoking in any establishment where minors are not present, and apparently the governor isn’t too happy with it…
From the TD:
“The health of adults is important, too,” the governor said. “It’s not a minor’s health bill… it’s a Virginians health bill.”
Now that it has passed in the House, it will move on to the Senate.
-
Recommend this
on Facebook -
Report an error
-
Subscribe to our
Weekly Digest
Valerie Catrow
Valerie Catrow is editor of RVAFamily, mother to a mop-topped first grader, and always really excited to go to bed.
Notice: Comments that are not conducive to an interesting and thoughtful conversation may be removed at the editor’s discretion.
So bars after 10pm. Which is what we have now with no extra legislation necessary.
WACK YO!
Can you imagine coming home from Godfrey’s Sunday Drag Brunch and *not* reeking of cigarette smoke? Me either. For this reason, and this reason only, I’m ok with the latest development.
Also, I’m more worried about my lack of a pay raise for the next two years (being a state employee is good times) then I am about getting lung cancer frm second hand smoke. Maybe Kaine can spend more time on the budget now.
Smoking should absolutely be banned in all Virginia bars and restaurants, and the original bill should not be weakened or compromised in any way. Not having this legislation to protect all Virginians has only been harmful to public health and enjoyment.
For my husband and me, the lack of protection for non-smokers has caused us great distress. My husband enjoys playing in a band a few times a month after his work hours, and I enjoy going to hear him play at some of those events. Though he doesn’t drink at all, many of the venues where he plays are area bars.
When he comes home, his clothes and hair reek of smoke, and we can only imagine the effect on his lungs. He has been playing in the band for less than a year, though he has played music since he was a small child. Since he survived Legionnaire’s twelve years ago and has subsequent scar tissue in his lungs, he should not be around smoke at all. What an awful choice to have to make – between his health and playing music – when he has waited so long to do more with his music until our kids were in college and he completed another degree by studying after his work hours. (Maybe he should sit behind his keyboard wearing a respirator? But he sings a bit and plays harmonica also…)
In addition, I have been successfully battling an autoimmune situation and am prohibited from being around smoke myself. I will sometimes go to hear my husband’s band play on the early side, hoping that the crowds and smoking will be less than later on in the evening. But then I am forced to leave because of the overpowering smoke, though I would have enjoyed being able to stay longer if the air quality had been safe.
Many times when I thought that the smoke was very light, I would get home to find that I was absolutely reeking with cigarette smoke, and I’d realize that I had been in a very dangerous environment. The lingering smoke has been so strong on our clothes that we’d have to leave them far from our main living areas to not be overpowered by the odor until washing the clothes the next day.
Our kids (in their early twenties) would also like to hear their dad’s band play more than they do, but the toxic air quality prevents them from staying long.
We are all about small and limited government, but government has its place in providing infrastructure such as safe roads and bridges, law enforcement, common defense, and protection for the PUBLIC HEALTH. Those who choose to smoke have every right to do so in locations which have no effect on other people, but they don’t have the right to poison the air and therefore prevent the enjoyment of other people in public places.
CAS, I’m for the smoking bill, but c’mon, it’s not as if your husband really has to choose between his life and his passion. He could easily play non-smoking or outside venues.
Brodie, he does not play solo, and has no control over the bookings. The band does play some outside venues in warm weather, but they largely play in area bars.
I’m glad to learn that you support a non-smoking bill – but we do believe that Virginians should be free to go into ANY public place without the threat of exposure to second-hand smoke.