Gov. Schwarzenegger VETOED AB1467

Publication Date: 2007-10-16

Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed AB 1467, the bill passed by the legislature to finally close the loopholes in California's smokefree workplace law.

The Governor's action is extremely disappointing. At a time when many cities and states around the county have surpassed California's level of smokefree workplace protections, we expect our Governor to respect the Legislature's decision and do the right thing to ensure smokefree indoor air in all of California's indoor job settings. Too many Californians are still exposed to secondhand smoke in employee break rooms, small workplaces, warehouses, hotel lobbies and other work settings that are left behind.

In his veto statement, the Governor ignores secondhand smoke exposure and worker health entirely. Instead, he focused on cessation services, which are certainly important aspects of tobacco control but entirely outside the purpose of this bill to reduce workplace exposure to secondhand smoke. He states, "California has led the nation in effective smoking control activities, achieving the second lowest rate of smoking among adults in the nation...While more needs to be done to reduce smoking rates, I do not agree that placing further restrictions on business owners is the correct approach. Instead, California can further reduce smoking rates in other ways, such as increasing access to cessation services." You can read the complete veto statement here.

Thankfully, local governments around California continue to take action to close loopholes and expand smokefree protections in their communities. We support local communities' efforts to increase smokefree areas and encourage you to continue supporting smokefree air in your community.

ANR will convey our extreme disappointment and disapproval directly to the Governor's office. If you wish to add your comments, you can contact the Governor using his online form. Fill out all fields and select "other" as the subject.

Thank you to the many ANR members and friends who spoke up in support of this smokefree legislation. Together we can work toward strengthening smokefree protections for all Californian's.