rebeljohn
New Member
Some good news for a change.................at least for us here in NC...........
Statewide Smoking Ban Fails to Clear N.C. House
RALEIGH, N.C. — An attempt to ban smoking in many public areas across North Carolina narrowly failed in the House on Wednesday, as tobacco territory Democrats sided with Republicans who called the measure an infringement on the rights of business owners.
"We gave it our best shot," said Rep. Hugh Holliman, D-Davidson, the bill's sponsor, who pulled the measure from the floor calendar several times and took the bill through committee twice in a futile effort to win support.
House members voted 61-55 against the measure. More than a dozen Democrats from counties where tobacco is grown or manufactured opposed the ban.
Holliman urged lawmakers to view the bill as an effort to protect nonsmoking citizens from unwanted exposure to smoke in restaurants, offices and other businesses. He compared it laws and regulations that try to protect workers from on-the-job hazards.
"It's not about personal freedoms. It's not about business property rights," he said. "This is a health issue bill. Cancer has probably impacted every family here in one way or another. We need at this time to dig a little deep, have some political courage and do what's right for our people."
Statewide Smoking Ban Fails to Clear N.C. House
RALEIGH, N.C. — An attempt to ban smoking in many public areas across North Carolina narrowly failed in the House on Wednesday, as tobacco territory Democrats sided with Republicans who called the measure an infringement on the rights of business owners.
"We gave it our best shot," said Rep. Hugh Holliman, D-Davidson, the bill's sponsor, who pulled the measure from the floor calendar several times and took the bill through committee twice in a futile effort to win support.
House members voted 61-55 against the measure. More than a dozen Democrats from counties where tobacco is grown or manufactured opposed the ban.
Holliman urged lawmakers to view the bill as an effort to protect nonsmoking citizens from unwanted exposure to smoke in restaurants, offices and other businesses. He compared it laws and regulations that try to protect workers from on-the-job hazards.
"It's not about personal freedoms. It's not about business property rights," he said. "This is a health issue bill. Cancer has probably impacted every family here in one way or another. We need at this time to dig a little deep, have some political courage and do what's right for our people."
