R.J. Reynolds behind push to water down Arizona smoking ban

Publication Date: 2006-06-12

• Author:Associated Press
• Publication:Charlotte Observer

A rollback initiative funded by a North Carolina cigarette maker and Arizona business owners would allow smoking in all bars and some restaurants statewide, overturning smoking bans in cities including Tempe and Prescott.

The possible unraveling is the work of a group called the Non-Smoker Protection Committee, which wants a uniform state smoking law, with restrictions applied across the board and cities prohibited from passing strict bans.

The group is headed by a Phoenix bar owner, and has the support of tobacco giant R.J. Reynolds. The North Carolina company gave $10,000 to get an initiative on the November ballot.

The potential undoing of voter-approved measures has upset those who supported Tempe's smoking ban inside all bars and restaurants.

"It's a big step backward," said Janet Norman, a Tempe resident opposed to a watered-down state law. "I would be very upset about that. I'm asthmatic and I'm trying very hard to have another baby. I want to be able to breathe and I want an environment for my daughter that's environmentally sound."