Smokers fret as House OKs smoking ban
RALEIGH — On the same day the House voted to ban smoking in most public places, Amanda Miller was having lunch at Ham’s on Friendly Avenue and was not pleased legislators want to keep her from lighting up.
“If you don’t want to smell like smoke, don’t go to a bar,” said Miller, 22, of Greensboro.
Although restaurants like Ham’s that allow children inside would have to kick smokers to the curb, some bars could be exempt under the proposed smoking ban as written.
But the measure is only halfway through its legislative journey. House members took the second of two votes on the ban Thursday, sending it to the Senate.
The measure is hailed by health advocates, who say secondhand smoke sickens thousands of people and costs the state hundreds of millions of dollars in health care costs every year. In particular, children and those who work in businesses that until now allow smoking will benefit, say its backers.
Eric Thomas, a server and bartender at Ham’s, said he was ambivalent about the possibility of a ban. Thomas, 21, of Greensboro acknowledged that a smoke-free restaurant would be healthier for workers and patrons. But health isn’t necessarily what drives people to go to a restaurant, he said.
“This restaurant, people like to come here to relax,” Thomas said. “And regardless of what medical experts said, smokers say it helps them relax. If we take away smoking, I think we’re going to lose a lot of customers.”
As it passed the House, the bill does have one major loophole. Bars could allow smoking if they post a sign saying that smoking is allowed and do not serve or employ those under age 18.
That change from the original bill, which would have excluded all bars, has earned the measure new opponents.
“We’re going to tell the Senate we’re opposed to House Bill 2,” said Paul Stone, who leads the N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association. His group had remained neutral on the bill when it was a broad-based ban.
But Stone said that restaurants that stay open late mainly to serve bar patrons would be at a disadvantage if they could not allow smoking but adults-only bars could.
“There’s no longer a level playing field,” Stone said.
When the bill moves into the Senate, its future is uncertain but it has the backing of Sen. Marc Basnight, a Dare County Democrat and the chamber’s top leader.
“I hope we pass it,” Basnight said. “The reason for the bill is one of health. ... Smoke should not be in any building.”
Basnight is a restaurant owner and acknowledges the subject can be controversial, even within his family. His daughters, who run the family business, allow smoking in the bar area, something Basnight said he wouldn’t be inclined to do.
The bill has the backing of Sen. Katie Dorsett, a Greensboro Democrat who has sponsored similar legislation. Sen. Don Vaughan, also a Greensboro Democrat, and Stan Bingham, a Davidson County Republican who represents parts of High Point, have said they were undecided when asked in the past two weeks.
Sen. Tony Rand, a Fayetteville Democrat and one of Basnight’s top lieutenants, said the loophole that the restaurant association is objecting to may make the bill easier to pass the Senate.
“More people will feel comfortable with it,” Rand said.
Contact Sonja Elmquist at 373-7090 or sonja.elmquist@news-record.com
Contact Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mark.binker@news-record.com
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