The Capitol finally goes smoke-free

Publication Date: 2007-09-20

• Author:Forum Editorial
• Publication:The Forum-Fargo, ND

Starting next week the smoke-filled entryways into the building will be smoke-free. Smoking will be permitted only in a few obscure locations, either outdoors or in a "butt hut" near the Capitol's east door, and in a few outdoor locations near other buildings on the grounds...

The 2007 Legislature passed the new smoking ban and the policy was announced by the Capitol’s Facilities Management Division. It took a long time to clean up the building's entrances, but at last it's done.

Now lawmakers anticipating the 2009 session should get serious about a statewide workplace smoking and secondhand smoke ban. Cities have done their best to eliminate smoking, but a few city officials have used the state's inaction to avoid acting locally. Had the Legislature done the right thing, a uniform ban would be in place and the legal, electoral and political paroxysms under way in Fargo, West Fargo and other places would not be happening. But, as any longtime observer of the Legislature knows, it sometimes takes a while for lawmakers to hear citizens over the well-financed drumbeats of special interest lobbyists.