Smoke-Free Bill Dead, But Not Buried

Publication Date: 2007-05-25

• Publication:590 KLBJ News Radio, TX

A bill that promised to make public and work places smoke-free across the state dies in the Texas Senate, but the issue is not dead.

State lawmakers considered a smoke-free bill for the first time. Kirsten Voinis with Smoke-Free Texas says she's disappointed, but not totally surprised the bill didn't pass. She says twenty states have passed smoke-free laws and none of them were successful on the first try.

Voinis says legislators understand the health issues associated with smoking, and the effects of second-hand smoke. She says their objections had to do with how it would affect businesses, and civil liberties issues. She says Smoke-Free Texas has to educate lawmakers and clear up some misinformation. She says they plan to do that when lawmakers return to Austin in 2009 and she says she's optimistic..