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Excerpts from: County ban on smoking proposed

By CATHY WOODRUFF http://www.timesunion.com   [10/30/02]
 
Albany-- Bill would outlaw lighting up in all bars, restaurants, bingo halls and bowling alleys

In a move that already has ignited a smoldering controversy, an Albany County lawmaker is proposing legislation that would ban smoking entirely in workplaces, including bars and restaurants.

County Legislator Gary Domalewicz, D-Albany, said he plans to introduce the proposed local law next month and already has three Democratic co-sponsors on board. Appearing with representatives of the American Lung Association, American Cancer Society and other organizations at a news conference, he touted the bill as a matter of workers' rights.

"No worker in Albany County should be forced to breathe a known human carcinogen in order to hold down a job," he said.

There would be few exceptions to the ban Domalewicz proposes. All bars, restaurants, bingo halls and bowling areas would be smoke-free, as well as small businesses. About the only remaining havens for smokers -- aside from the outdoors and their own homes -- would be private clubs like the Elks or the Hibernians.

"I'm looking forward to a healthy debate," Domalewicz said. "I feel confident that, once the facts get out, people will support it."

The Domalewicz legislation is much like a tough anti-smoking law that New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is trying to pass. Nassau County on Long Island recently passed a similar law, and Suffolk and Westchester counties also are considering such measures. California and Delaware have statewide bans on smoking in most workplaces.

"This is a growing trend around the country," said Tim Nichols, director of government affairs for the American Lung Association of New York.

Currently, state law requires separate smoking areas for restaurants with 50 or more seats if the restaurant chooses to allow smoking at all. But in many cases, it's virtually impossible to completely separate the smoking or bar areas from the nonsmoking dining area, Nichols said.

"It's like chlorine in a swimming pool," he said "It doesn't stay in one section."

While state law now says workers can ask that they or a smoking co-worker be moved if the air quality bothers them, "it really puts the burden of enforcement on the employee," Nichols said.

During a debate this month, Gov. George Pataki and his two major opponents, H. Carl McCall and B. Thomas Golisano, indicated they would support a statewide smoking ban, though legislation implementing that ban stalled amid Capitol gridlock this year after Pataki expressed concern about its impact on small business.

Albany County Executive Michael Breslin, who earlier this month signed a law banning smoking throughout all county government buildings, said he's concerned about the effects of secondhand smoke on workers, but stopped short of embracing Domalewicz's proposal before studying it more closely.

"In concept, I would like to have a much broader area where smoking is prohibited," Breslin said. "I just don't know how far, how fast and with what consequences you move to that position."

At least one public hearing on the issue would have to be held, officials said.