Smoking ban sought in all county venues

The Salt Lake Valley Board of Health wants to eliminate smoking in any public venue countywide, expanding its earlier proposal to ban smoking in public parks.

It hopes to extend the smoke-free zone to include "all places of employment, restaurants, bars, private clubs, parks and other public recreation areas."

The panel unanimously voted Thursday for a resolution that would seek health regulations prohibiting smoking in all those venues. To do that, they'll have to seek changes in the Utah Indoor Clean Air Act, which has a preemption clause that says no local government can make indoor clean-air regulations that are not in line with the act itself, Craig Anderson of the Salt Lake County attorney's office told them.

The Utah Indoor Clean Air Act has exemptions to the smoking ban in public places. For instance, it allows smoking in private clubs.

The Board of Health wants to go for broke. Earlier this summer, it supported a plan that would ban smoking within 50 feet of "playgrounds, play pits/sandboxes, sporting areas, children and animal venues, gathering places, concession stands and pathways." Thursday they agreed it would be better to drop the distance restriction in favor of a total ban.

Outdoor venues aren't covered by the Utah Indoor Clean Air Act and therefore counties could go for more restrictive bans, the group agreed.

Utah is now about five to eight years behind in nonsmoking regulations, said Thomas Guinney, board of health member and co-owner of Gastronomy. "When you look at the data, it's an embarrassment as a citizen of Utah" that the state has lagged, he said.

Other states, including California and New York, have much stronger bans on smoking and protections against secondhand smoke.

Guinney predicted there would be very little resistance, though "what little there is will be vocal." He foresees a "good possibility" that groups like the ski association and the restaurant association will adopt similar resolutions supporting a ban, which he said would be a boon for tourism.

Board chairwoman Cheryl D. Cook said protecting the health of employees who work in places where smoking is allowed is a concern. And Darrin Sluga, county health department tobacco program manager, noted that the elderly, children and people with impaired health are most at risk from secondhand smoke.

Salt Lake Valley Health Department executive director Patti Pavey reminded the group that when car seat regulations were first proposed, they were controversial.

"It's a no-brainer now," she said, indicating that smoking bans would also be widely accepted — even expected — in the future.

The resolution calls on the health department staff to draft a proposed secondhand smoke regulation for the board and urges the County Council to enact an ordinance that would make all the proposed areas smoke-free.

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