Restaurant, bar owners oppose smoking ban

Publication Date: 2007-05-14

• Author:Natalie Lombardo
• Publication:Royal Oak Daily Tribune

Measure under consideration in state Senate committee.

As it moves through the Legislature, a controversial proposal could ban public smoking, including in the workplace and restaurants throughout the state...

Senate Bill 109 reflects a snowballing trend throughout the country, with states such as New York, California, Florida and Ohio applying similar bans...

George Miller, manager of Oakland County Health Division, said Michigan needs to make the change.

"We'll be a healthier community for it," Miller said. "Secondhand smoke can be as bad as firsthand. It's been proven as much of a health risk for ailments as those individuals inhaling the smoke."

Sen. Gilda Jacobs, D-Huntington Woods, is one sponsor contending that smoking is a serious public health issue that can easily be addressed.

"If we want to have a healthier state, prevent lung cancer and other kinds of diseases that result from inhaling secondhand smoke, we have to make a commitment to make sure people aren't exposed to it," she said.