Pennsylvania - State-wide Public Smoking Ban

Joined Feb 2005
2K Posts | 0+
Cedar Key
Pennsylvania Senators introduced a smoking ban. I recommend contacting your state senator to voice your opinion.

Senate Bill No 246 - Clean Indoor Air Act (Smoking Ban)
 
Here was my email:

Senator Orie,

I notice with regret that you introduced Senate Bill No 246 - Clean Indoor Air Act (Statewide Public Smoking Ban) - on January 29th. I take issue with imposing such a ban on private property. The owner of a restaurant/bar/establishment should have the choice on whether to allow smoking or not. Should he choose to allow smoking, his customers have the choice on whether or not to continue patronizing the establishment. The market will decide whether the owner's decision is a good one or not. The same goes for employees - if you don't wish to work in a smoking environment, look elsewhere for a job. My wife is pregnant right now and as a result, we don't go into bars or restaurants that allow smoking. That is our choice. At no time have we considered it unfair or thought that the owner needs to bend to our wishes. His choice cost him our business.

I occasionally smoke a cigar and this bill will have no direct impact on my daily life, but that doesn't make it right.

If the private property argument isn't enough to change your mind, look to Colorado:
January 20th article in the Rocky Mountain News
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/l ... 30,00.html

They enacted a similar ban with an exemption that may be granted for businesses with 5% or more of their revenue from tobacco products. Here are three Colorado business owners and what they have to say.

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Billy's Inn

4403 Lowell Blvd., Denver

Owner: James Von Feldt

Business is down substantially, and Von Feldt doesn't have the records to show that he earned 5 percent of revenues from tobacco prior to the deadline set by Colorado's anti-smoking law. So no smoking in Billy's, as of yet.

"My revenues are down 41 percent," Von Feldt said. He has laid off two people and now opens the bar himself seven days a week.

"I do all the janitorial work myself, too," he said.

"With all the snow, I couldn't afford to hire anyone to plow it, so I do it by hand."

Von Feldt said, "We still get the same crowd, but they just don't stay as long.

"In this kind of weather, who could stand outside and smoke a cigarette?"

He is a member of the Stop the Bans coalition of tavern owners, and he says 20 bars have closed since the ban began on July 1.

Von Feldt said he had an offer of $825,000 for his bar in 2005, but the best offer last year was $650,000.

"I've already lost $175,000. But legislators aren't concerned about my losses. They're only concerned about my employees' health," he said.

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Paris on the Platte

1553 Platte St.

Owner: Faye Maguire

Most of her patrons are smokers, so Maguire is letting them smoke - and hoping the exemption comes through after the district attorney looks at the paperwork.

Maguire said there's an uneasy agreement with the Denver District Attorney's Office that smokers and bars won't be fined until the requirements for cigar bars get clarified.

"There's no doubt we get 5 percent of our revenues from tobacco," Maguire said. "We sell them over the counter - domestic and imported cigarettes. We have a case that shows the brands we carry."

"Ninety percent of our customers smoked - and still smoke. I'm sure we'd see a drop in business if they did enforce the ban."

Maguire considers it a "matter of personal freedom," noting she doesn't allow smoking in her wine bar until 9:30 at night because that's what most of her customers prefer.

"People should be able to vote with their feet," she added.

"Government shouldn't be regulating the way individuals run their businesses."

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Celtic Tavern

1808 Blake St., Denver

Co-owner: Patrick Schaetzle

Schaetzle says his place was, and is, a legitimate cigar bar. He is confident he'll be granted an exemption and is allowing smoking in the meantime.

"We've met all the criteria," Schaetzle said. "We just received a letter from the state to present the criteria and get everything documented."

The Celtic, which also now occupies the old Delaney's space, installed a humidor, in which customers rent space to store their cigars.

The rental income counts toward the $50,000 in revenues the bar must show to get an exemption as a cigar bar.

"We wanted to get ahead of the train, so we had a cop who works off-duty for us write us a ticket," Schaetzle said. That started the dialogue between the tavern and the Denver District Attorney's office over whether the Celtic Tavern qualified as a cigar bar.

"We have a back room called the Robert Burns Room, with a leather couch and fireplace," Schaetzle said. "All our receipts are computerized."

"Our tobacco sales are up 75 percent to 100 percent since the ban," he said.

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The end result is that the majority of the smaller, non-chain establishments will have a noticeable decline in business.

I urge you to reconsider your position on this bill and vote no on it.

Thank you,
David Wyman