Republican urges DeWeese to act on statewide smoking ban: Work urged on smoking bill

Publication Date: 2007-10-03

• Author:KORI WALTER
• Publication:Bucks County Courier Times

House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese's counterpart in the state Senate thinks it's time to re-ignite debate in the Legislature over a statewide smoking ban.

Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi wrote to DeWeese on Tuesday, urging House leadership to figure out its next move on legislation known as the Clean Indoor Air Act.

"The process of adopting a Clean Indoor Air Act in Pennsylvania should not be further delayed," wrote Pileggi, a Delaware County Republican. "We need to begin our work immediately so that a meaningful compromise can be forged on this difficult and important issue."

The House passed a bill in July that would ban smoking in restaurants, bars and almost all public places. But the Senate, which had backed a less restrictive ban that included exemptions for portions of slots casinos and private clubs, rejected the House version.

That appeared to set the stage for a conference committee, which includes members from the House and Senate, to meet to come up with a compromise bill. However, the House has taken no action that would move the bill to a conference committee.