I attended Freedom to Choose’s second Day of Defiance at The Swan pub, Churchgate, Bolton, Lancashire, UK on 1st July 2007 and what a great event it was. Well, I say what a great event it was, but in fact it’s due to continue until 4 am tomorrow morning (July 2nd).
Nick Hogan, the landlord, reported that on the evening and night of 30th June his establishment was almost completely packed with about 700 attending and following on from a briefing provided earlier in the day for other pub landlords and the press.
To-day’s event commenced at about 12 midday and by about 2 pm the Swan was pleasantly filled with a fluctuating crowd of about 300 people from all over the UK. Freedom to Choose members were drawn from Scotland (quite a few) and Wales with one even turning up from Northern Ireland. English locations represented were: Nottingham, Leicester, Cambridge, Peterborough, Bolton and Manchester.
There were also a lot of non Freedom to Choose members too (and of course) and some had come specially from Manchester and other towns and cities surrounding Bolton to attend the event.
There was a superb traditional jazz band which played throughout most of the afternoon and a particularly colourful performance was given by the Accrington Scottish Pipe Band which was most stirring for the soul.
The press appeared to be there in abundance as well although this writer studiously avoided them preferring instead to leave the task of speaking to them to others more gifted in that department. Some of the “defiers” even wore imaginative rigouts with a cowboy flavour which provided excellent material for press photographs. It was good too to hear people on mobile phones telling their friends to “come on over as everyone is smoking”.
Furthermore, on more than one occasion I heard non-smoking attendees stating: “everyone should have freedom to choose”.
Nick Hogan also reported that his phone had been ringing continuously with messages of support coming in from all over the world including our colleagues from Hawaii.
The police were great and did not interfere, as promised, and the afternoon proceeded in an orderly fashion (no loutish behaviour at all and everyone friendly). However, just in case anyone thinks this means the event was dull would be wrong. It was a good old fashioned type pub event and nothing whatsoever similar to the rather crummy soulless atmospheres of pubs and bars which have been polluted by the policies of antismokerism.
With antismokers in mind, the highlight of the afternoon resulted from the actions of three of them who turned up to try and push their message. One particularly bold woman of uncertain age informed Nick Hogan that she had a right to choose too and that his pub was not, by permitting smoking, allowing her, her choice. Nick explained that despite the fact The Swan is called a “public house” it is, nevertheless, still private property in addition to being his home and that he may choose the conditions that prevail there and, moreover, that she was able to choose whether to enter or not. The antismoker started to become enraged and a little aggressive, in fact she reminded me of an irate turkey with a knitting needle stuck in its bottom. Nick’s response was to give her a practical lesson in what it means to have one’s freedom of choice truly taken away. He physically removed her from his premises and told her she was barred!
I haven’t laughed so much for quite some time…
Bladimir Tolstoy.
===
In the past, Antismokers could count on the power of organization given to them by their money to overwhelm a disorganized and loosely connected opposition. Smokers' Rights groups just didn't have the funding for worldwide conferences and other such niceties and the antismoking "Roman Legions" could roll onward from village to village with their shiny armor and swords while meeting nothing more than disorganized farmers with pitchforks.
We still might not have much more than pitchforks to meet them with... but when they roll into a village now they find farmers from other villages are there too... and their pitchforks have been sharpened to be armor piercing, and the outcomes of the encounters are no longer foregone conclusions.
The Worldwide Day of Defiance! was an important event, but it's not a stand-alone flash in the dark. The lies behind the smoking bans are being exposed and, just like cockroaches, the Antismokers will scatter before the light in 2007 and beyond!
- Michael J. McFadden
Author of Dissecting Antismokers' Brains
Mid-Atlantic Regional Director, The Smoker's Club, Inc.
Protest The Law
The Hawaii Bar Owners Association is participating in "World Defiance Day" to protest the state's smoking ban. They are joining bars across the world, especially in England, that oppose smoking bans.
Where: O'Toole's Irish Pub, 902 Nuuanu Ave.
When: 1 p.m. tomorrow
Smoking-ban rules, enforcement coming
Bar owners OK with patrons defying smoking ban
June 30, 2007
Eddie Chant has been in Hawaii for only about a week and already he's defying the law.
He was ready to go outside to smoke his cigarette while drinking a beer at Pigskins Sports Bar on Kapiolani Boulevard recently. Then he noticed everyone around him was smoking and saw ashtrays lining the bar.
"The bartender told us, 'The law says you can't smoke and I can't give you an ashtray. But they're over there,' " said Chant, 46, who recently moved from Cleveland.
With virtually no enforcement in the nearly eight months that the smoking ban has been in effect, some bar owners are essentially ignoring the law and finding loopholes that keep customers happy by letting them light up indoors.
It's left up to the state Department of Health, not the bar owners, to decide how to enforce the law that prohibits smoking in enclosed and partially enclosed areas and within 20 feet of entranceways. Health officials are still talking with the state Attorney General's Office to clarify the law and with county police departments on enforcement.
In the meantime, Pigskins bar owner Lance Gomes said he owns a smoking bar again. He has posted "no smoking" signs inside and outside and tells customers that smoking inside is illegal, in accordance with the law.
In the first three months after the smoking ban went into effect, Gomes said he tried to enforce it himself.
"I told people they had to smoke outside," Gomes said. "People were pissed. I had two people walk out on tabs. People were rained on outside. I lost 50 percent of my business. After that, I said I am going to be a smoking bar again and from that day, I was."
Since then, Gomes said his business went up 30 percent, but is still down about 20 percent from pre-ban days.
Fred Remington, co-owner of the Irish Rose Saloon, Kelley O'Neils and O'Toole's Irish Pub, said he is also following the law despite allowing people to smoke.
"We post the signs and we tell people smoking's prohibited," he said. "If the customer wants to take that chance and light up, I don't want them to burn down my bar, so I give them an ashtray."
Janice Okubo, the Health Department's spokeswoman, said the administrative rules will help clarify the business owners' role in the smoking ban. In warning letters issued to more than 100 businesses, the department says to "make reasonable efforts to ensure a smoke-free environment by removing all ashtrays and smoking paraphernalia" to be in compliance with the law.
Julian Lipsher, manager for the Health Department's Tobacco Prevention and Education Program, said it usually takes about a year for most states to have rules and regulations set up. As time passes, he expects more to comply with the ban.
"We have widespread compliance," he said. "It seems to be working well in a majority of places that comply with the law. We don't see any reason why it can't work across the board."
Lipsher said he is expecting the Attorney General's Office to return the administrative rules with comments to the Health Department soon. The administrative rules, which need to be approved by the governor and go through public hearings, will give the Health Department power to issue fines against noncompliant businesses.
Business owners can be fined $100 for their first violation, $200 the next year and $500 for each additional violation annually.
So far, only one smoker has been cited and fined $25 for violating the ban. She pleaded guilty last month rather than taking it to court to test the law.
While that citation was giving by a passing police officer, the Honolulu Police Department's policy is to wait for a complainant to call, said spokeswoman Michelle Yu.
HPD asks for the complainant to wait for an officer to show up and identify the smoker or business not in compliance with the ban.
Until specific rules are in place, George Massengale of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii recommends that every person do his or her part by writing formal complaints of violators to the Health Department.
Pigskins owner Gomes said his customers can enjoy a smoking bar while he waits to see the law's clarifications.
"We'll cross that bridge when it comes," he said.
Read
Both Sides React to Placement of Tobacco Funds Bill on Potential Veto List
June 27, 2007
By Minna Sugimoto
HONOLULU (KHNL) - Should the state dip into its tobacco settlement fund for purposes other than to combat smoking? A bill that would send money to the University of Hawaii medical school is on the Governor's potential veto list. Now, both sides of the issue are chiming in.
When Kathy Harty sees a person enjoying a cigarette, she thinks about her father, a smoker who died from lung cancer 10 years ago.
"He ended up with having a very tough time and died a very painful death," she said. "And I wouldn't want that to happen to anyone."
She wants the Governor to veto a bill that would divert money from Hawaii's tobacco settlement fund to the University of Hawaii to help cover operating expenses at its medical school.
"States who have raided their tobacco control funds for purposes not related to tobacco control have suffered the consequences," Harty said. "Tobacco rates have soared, particularly among young people."
But UH officials hope the measure won't go up in smoke. They say while contracts and grants income at the school has increased, the jump hasn't been enough to cover costs.
"No one foresaw that for the past three or four years, however, that the amount of research funding at the federal level would actually diminish," Gregg Takayama, University of Hawaii, said. "The competition for research funds has been fierce."
He says using money from the tobacco fund makes sense.
"Our medical students and faculty deal directly with the consequences of tobacco, with tobacco smoking," Takayama said. "And so this bears a direct correlation with the intent of the tobacco fund."
The Governor has until July 10th to decide whether to veto the bill.
Read
Hawaii's Smoking Ban: An Assault on Freedom
5/15/2007
By Sen. Sam Slom, R-Hawaii Kai
On November 16, 2006, the annual "Great Smokeout" day, after more than a decade of trying, well organized and well financed anti-smoking advocates in Hawaii won the legislative prize of a near-statewide ban on smoking. Hawaii joined 11 other states with comprehensive statewide bans.
Each of the four counties in Hawaii have had their own laws to partially ban smoking, with the City & County of Honolulu being the most stringent. A battle for restaurant smoking bans was won several years ago, but bars were excluded. Emboldened, and supported with Tobacco Settlement funds, many groups came together last year and successfully pushed to enact the comprehensive ban. Their lobbying was textbook.
Hawaii's law requires any smoking to take place in designated areas only, at least twenty feet from any enclosed facility. Open outdoor areas-such as parks and beaches-cars and residences (unless the residence is also used as a business) are not covered, as yet. Anti-smoking groups already have their sights on cars containing children or the elderly, and homes with children. Parks and beaches can't be far behind.
An interesting wrinkle in the law: All convicts throughout Hawaii's penal system are exempt from the ban and may smoke it up; apparently "second hand smoke' doesn't bother guards and corrections officials. And we certainly wouldn't want to upset convicted felons.
The vote on the final conference draft of the bill, SB3262 (SD1, HD1, CD1) on May 2, 2006, was 47-3 (1 excused) in the State House. Voting no were Reps. Cindy Evans (D-7/Hawai'I), Mark Moses (R-40th/ O'ahu) and Bob Nakasone (D-9th/O'ahu). In the State Senate, the final vote was 22-3. Senators Sam Slom (R-8th/Oahu), Gordon Trimble (R-12th-Oahu) and Paul Whalen (R-3rd/Hawai'I) cast no votes.
A companion measure simultaneously raised the tax substantially on tobacco products. Hawaii, the third highest taxed state overall, also has the third highest tobacco taxes.
The smoking ban bill's primary sponsor in the Senate was the Health Committee's Roz Baker (D-5th, Maui), who lamented Hawai'I workers have no choice but to endure smoke in the workplace. Baker's House counterpart, Rep. Dennis Arakaki (D-30th O'ahu) also argued that employee health in smoking environments was of paramount concern. He was quoted as saying, "We've come a long way, baby." (Arakaki retired from politics and chose not to run in November, 2006). House Labor Chair, Rep. Kirk Caldwell (D-24th O'ahu), declared, "This is all about protecting the rights of the nonsmokers."
Hawai'I Island Rep. Dr. Josh Green, a medical doctor from Kailua-Kona said, "Secondhand smoke kills more than a thousand residents annually." The executive director of the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Hawaii, Deborah Zysman, proclaimed, "Legislators are now able to save thousands of lives all at once."
Where was the opposition? A few bar owners and patrons spoke up and testified before the Legislature. Small Business Hawaii (SBH) was one of the few business organizations on record in opposition. Opponents spoke in economic terms and of projected lost business. Especially among Japanese and Asian tourists. A handful of lawmakers raised questions about bans in general, trampling on the rights of smokers, the legal exercise of smoking, lack of a direct scientific link between second hand smoke and disease, freedom of choice, and the issue of money-driven legislation, to little consequence. Only six of 76 legislators- cited above- actually voted no. The majority of the media, health groups, individual employees, some unions, non-profits and children's advocates kept up an ever increasing drum beat of the sense of emergency and made opponents feel or appear guilty of neglect and insensitivity. Others, who had been through previous local government battles, had given up.
With great fanfare-mostly from the media and anti-smoking advocates- the law became effective six months after the legislature adjourned. In actuality, little changed initially.
Then in early 2007, the Hawaii Pro Smokers' Alliance emerged, under the leadership of Big Island resident and businessman, Kawika Crowley. The name of the group was amended to, "Americans for Freedom of Choice (AFC)." Crowley began to canvas the more than 200 bars, taverns and clubs on O'ahu, seeking data and support for an almost impossible task: to reverse or amend the smoking ban. Despite being told he had no chance, Crowley and his ever increasing membership, mounted an unprecedented legislative counter attack at the start of the Legislative Session in January. He and supporters, particularly Jolyn Tenn, of the Hawaii Bar Owners Association, surprised lawmakers and opponents with their tenacity. And Crowley and Tenn did it all on their own nickel, at the expense of their businesses.
AFC held rallies at the Capitol, personally lobbied lawmakers EVERY day, published and distributed daily updated smoking impact flyers, factual one-page releases, appeared in the regular and alternative media and then recruited lawmakers on a bipartisan basis to stand up and sign on with them. AFC organized civil disobedient smoke-ins at local pubs. So successful were they that Hawai'I Tobacco Free's Zyzman even filed a bogus TRO against Crowley in an attempt to keep him out of the State Capitol while she roamed there at will.
By the end of the Session in May 2007, the group counted nearly one-third of Hawaii's Legislature as signatories supporting expanded smokers' rights. While not able to overturn or amend the ban legislation this year-an attempt to amend fell short in the final days of the session-the group will be back in 2008; a major election year for all 51 members of the state House and 13 of the 25 State Senators.
AFC's passion remains. They represent true grassroot organization-and an understanding of Constitutional rights. And Crowley reminds that smokers vote.
There has been one citation issued to date under Hawaii's new law; a $25 fine issued to a patron openly smoking in a downtown Honolulu bar in April 2007.
Sam Slom (R) represents the districts of Hawaii Kai to Diamond Head in the Hawaii State Senate.
Read
Smoking ban prompts fine for first time
The plaintiff refused a request from bar owners to challenge the law
The first, and so far only, person cited for violating the state's ban on smoking in bars and restaurants pleaded guilty yesterday in Honolulu District Court and was fined $25.
Honolulu police said an officer spotted the woman smoking in a downtown Honolulu bar March 14 and issued her the citation.
The state Health Department, which is charged with enforcing the ban, said it is not yet equipped to do that kind of enforcement and is working on an agreement with the county police departments.
Floreen Mayeda did not want her case hijacked by opponents of the state smoking ban. So she pleaded guilty yesterday in Honolulu District Court and paid a $25 fine for smoking in Club Ke Kai's Lounge on March 14.
Mayeda, 71, is the first person cited for violating the law, in effect since Nov. 16.
The outcome was disappointing to Jolyn Tenn, co-chairwoman of Hawaii Smokers Alliance and associate member of the Hawaii Bar Owners Association. Tenn said she contacted Mayeda about using her case to test the law.
"Fighting this ticket would've been the ticket," she said.
But Ke Kai's manager, Kalei Lee, said Mayeda "didn't want to pursue it. I don't blame her."
Tenn said the group intends to mount a new challenge after a state judge dismissed the bar owners' lawsuit last month seeking to prevent the state from enforcing the ban on smoking in public places.
Lee said Mayeda stepped into the downtown bar while smoking a cigarette to make a telephone call.
An officer spotted Mayeda and issued her the citation, said Michelle Yu, Honolulu Police Department spokeswoman.
"This shows the police will issue citations and the courts will issue fines," said Julian Lipsher, program coordinator of the state Department of Health's Tobacco Prevention and Education Program.
Bar owners said the new law hurts their business, and some have been tacitly or overtly encouraging customers to continue smoking in their establishments.
"We warn them at the beginning if they're willing to take the fine, that's fine," said Lee.
The Health Department, which has jurisdiction over enforcement, is working on an agreement with the county police departments similar to the one to enforce a ban on cigarette sales to minors.
Health spokeswoman Janice Okubo said a draft of administrative rules is under review by the state attorney general. Once approved, it will have to undergo public hearings.*
In the meantime, Okubo said, the department has issued more than 100 warning letters to businesses.
Read
April 14, 2007
Aloha Members !
As you all must know by now, this past week was very difficult.
First, on Tuesday, the 10th, Senator Sam Slom's floor amendment to HB1018 was voted against. This would have allowed for a new liquor classification to exempt them from the smoking ban. This was really our last shot at the legislature this year. I belive that the regular session ends in the first week of May.
Secondly, the very next day, on Wednesday the 11th, our law suit against the State of Hawaii was dismissed by Judge McKenna. But the good news is, she dismissed it without prejudice. What this means, is that we can still challenge the law based, on the constitutionality of it, if and when someone or some establishment, gets cited and or fined. The court did not want to rule on a hypothetical situation.
According to our Attorney, Paul Yamamura, we could refile the complaint alleging actual money damages as a result of the smoking law, but we would each have to show actual monetary losses that we incurred and not just percentages of business downturn. At this point, we are trying to regroup and figure out a different strategy. We may have lost this battle, but WE WILL WIN this war.
I would like to thank Sam Kekaula and his contingent from Kailua-Kona, I think they had about 12 members in all, for coming to the hearing on Tuesday. I'm sorry that I can't remember all of your names, but thank you for your sacrifice of time and expense of travel, to help support our organization.
As always, we are open for any suggestions and or recommendations and input that will help build and strengthen this organization. Till next week, Aloha !!!
Fred Remington
President
Hawaii Bar Owners Association
307 Lewers St. Suite #200
Honolulu, HI 96815
926-4711 office
924-5420 fax
479-0782 cell
Anti-smoking ban lawsuit thrown out by state judge
April 11, 2007
By KEN KOBAYASHI, Advertiser Courts Writer
A state judge this morning threw out a lawsuit by a group of bar owners challenging the state law banning smoking in bars and restaurants and within 20 feet of their entrances and windows.
Circuit Judge Sabrina McKenna granted the dismissal request by state lawyers, who argued that the Hawaii Bar Owners Association did not establish a valid claim that the law is unconstitutional.
She noted that although the group contends the law is unconstitutionally vague, none of its members has been cited for violating the law.
The judge, however, said the group may later refile the lawsuit.
Paul Yamamura, the group's lawyer, said they may refile their challenge if one of the members gets cited for violating the law.
Deputy Attorney General John Molay said he's confident that the state will be able to prevail even if a new lawsuit is filed.
The law went into effect Nov. 16 and is aimed at protecting people from secondhand smoke. Penalties include $100 for a first offense for a business and $50 for a smoker who violates the law.
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Hawaii Update
3/31/07
The Hawaii Freedom of Choice movement is now regarded by many at the capitol as the Cinderella Story of the 2007 legislative session...like the old hymn..."up from the grave "we" arose...” when Jolyn Tenn (will call here "J" from here on) of the Hawaii Smokers Alliance and I teamed up for the attack on the capitol back in February, we were snickered about and laughed at...over heard one man in the elevator whisper to a friend..."Yeah right, Ban the Ban, good luck".
We did kick off our movement with a big bang with our MARCH ON THE CAPITOL which spawned the fiasco in front of O'Tool's Bar, which then spawned the world wide coverage from BBC, CNN, USA Today, AP and on and on. But no, we didn't have much of a chance to win at the start. The task looked so horribly daunting and undoable to both of us and our committee members of l6.
However, as we began to learn the MO's of the Capitol Insider dealings and protocol we began to utilize our own experience and savvy in our own fields of work. J in real estate, and me in the advertising/marketing business. (I do believe, between J. and I we have rewritten the book on LOBBYING!) We both were green horns big time, without a clue as to what to do, where anything was, or proper procedure etc…
I had much experience in political campaigns (handled a number over the years), but what went on inside the square castle was a mystery to both of us. That ignorance turned into our favor as time went on.
We basically had two vehicles to hang our hopes on; one senate bill, and another house bill that would have allowed bar owners to purchase a special class liquor license to allow smoking in their businesses.
The first was blown out of the water by the health committee, in spite of a valiant effort on our part at the hearings. The second, a week later (Feb., 22) ended up deferred. This was in reality a huge victory for us, because had it not been for our growing support by then and huge concerted opposition front and platform, they would not even have voted it down. No Questions asked, much less having a hearing on it.
The deferral we considered a victory for us... well that's when the Cinderella story began. That was supposedly the end of the road for our movement. Most expected us to just go back home and wipe our tears up, but we didn't know any better, we didn't know the rules. Like a bunch of kids from Mongolia coming to America and playing tag football with a bunch of American kids, with no concept of time, rules, procedure, they slaughter the American kids using stones, sticks, and every conceivable weapon to achieve success. It’s kind of funny, when we think about it now. We must have looked really odd as we stepped on to the capitol grounds the very next Monday morning continuing on like nothing every happened a few days prior. With our daily flyers to be passed to every single lawmaker's office, starting at the governor's office all the way down four floors in that maze of a building.
We had come up with a strategy plan of not giving up, hoping that SOMETHING WOULD COME UP... SOMETHING... WE HAD NO CLUE... JUST SOMETHING... WE FELT IF ENOUGH LAWMAKERS COULD JOIN SOME KIND OF A NAME OF SOMETHING, THAT SOMETHING COULD HAPPEN.... HA.
That something did happen at the end of week 7 into the campaign. The most respected business magazine in the state, Pacific Business News, came out with a stunning article "What Smoking Ban?"
We had a backer of sorts on our platform. Following this, we decided to start up a movement called The Freedom of Choice Caucus (didn't even know what caucus really meant, had to look it up to make sure I didn't look stupid... ha!) The first flyer of the caucus had a huge "4" on it and the list of the "Courageous 4." Lawmakers who were pro business and who possessed common sense business-wise thinking on the matter..."what matter!...you guys are buried and dead in the water!!!"
We actually heard that from a number of lawmakers, snickering at our pitiful little list of 4 lawmakers out of 74. Yes we were the laughing stock of the capitol those first days of that week
Then a few more things of Devine providence began happening. Another bombshell article by PBN. A big story by a major paper, and another. By the end of the week we were up to 9. THIRTY ONE LAWMAKERS WERE ON BOARD THE FREEDOM OF CHOICE CAUCUS... NEARLY HALF OF THE LEGISLATIVE BODY
This just shows you what a little persistence and hard work can do.
We spend 5 to 6 hours everyday at the capitol, on call, with at least a dozen lawmakers, waiting for a call to see them for just l0 to l5 minutes. 99.5% of the time, after J. and I got through with them, they are either on the public list, or as anonymous. We'll take it any way we can get it. Our flyers, “drop-offs,” as we now call them, are hilarious, informative, and sometimes bordering on insanity, and even profanity. But the hundreds of staff and every single lawmaker in the square castle now expect something from us on a daily basis. Something entertaining and educational, and provocative, AND COMMON SENSE, DEBUNKING OUR OPPOSITION LEFT AND RIGHT. We now make them look like a bunch of ignorant idiots. We're like family now to nearly every single office. Yes, there is still a handful of offices that treat us like shit, totally disrespectful and arrogant, but we kill 'em with kindness. We have so many stories to tell, of incredible run ins in the elevator, run ins with our opposition, near face offs that left bits of our tongue on the ground. Providential events and happenings, unbelievable.
So now our goal is to garner so many lawmakers onto our platform that the media will HAVE TO DO A HUGE STORY ON IT... AND THE PUBLIC WILL DEMAND THAT THIS PROBLEM BE FIXED THIS SESSION, AND NOT NEXT YEAR.
Last week, the providential events kept coming with the head of Japanese tourism authority here in Hawaii finally stating publicly in the star bulletin that the impact of the smoking ban is definitely having an effect in the steady decline of the Japanese tourist count, confirming and validating what we have been saying all along.
Next week will be crucial, as we do believe that we will have hit 35 lawmakers on board. SOMETHING will have to happen then. Yes, from 4 to 31 in just three weeks. The David and Goliath story, big time. Last we heard goliath got his ass kicked!
Aloha everyone out there. Keep up the fight. It is not over until the last gavel drops in the square building.
Yes, it has been a Cinderella story, whether we’ll win or not, we don't know. But for us to come up from the grave that we were dropped into last month, and make a comeback from behind with 31 lawmakers on board just four weeks left into the ball game, is indeed a statement.
ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH DETERMINATION, SACRIFICE, AND A WHOLE LOT OF BALLS!
ALOHA, FRIENDS,
DAVE & JOLYN
David Kawika Crowley--TheSmokeVote.com
Jolyn Tenn- HawaiiSmokersAlliance.com
Limit smoking ban to enclosed bars
February 23, 2007
Defiant bar owners are asking the Legislature to allow exemptions from the new smoking ban on their premises.
HAWAII became part of a growing trend last year with a ban on smoking in all bars and restaurants. Some bar owners are defying the prohibition and calling for exemptions, but secondhand smoke has been shown to present a serious health hazard in enclosed areas. The ban inside bars should stand. However, smoking outside bars and in bars' open-air sections should be permitted.
Hawaii is among 13 states and numerous cities and counties that ban smoking in bars. Smoking bans inside bars have been imposed in Europe, beginning with Ireland in 2004 and followed by Norway, Malta, Italy and Spain, to be joined in July by England and Australia.
Ireland's Office of Tobacco Control cites figures from the hospitality industry showing no economic harm from its smoking bans in pubs. The success might be due to bar owners providing open-air smoking sections.
Cognizant of that, many bar owners in England and Australia are preparing for similar bans. "I've been to Dublin and seen nonsmokers sitting outside with smokers because the areas are so nice," liquor licensee Martyn Goulding told the Yorkshire Evening Post. "That's what we want to do here."
Hawaii's law does not reward such innovation because outside areas -- even nonbar property within 20 feet of a bar's entrances, exits, windows and ventilation intakes -- are off limits to smoking. Public health concerns that necessitate indoor smoking bans should not apply in the open air. It is unreasonable to expect Hawaii bar owners to police outside areas for violators.
In areas where Irish bar owners have been able to create beer gardens or shelters to comply with indoor smoking bans, those in urban areas where space is limited have encountered difficulty. That might be unavoidable, and a lawsuit filed by the Hawaii Bar Owners Association challenging the law as unconstitutional is not likely to improve their plight.
Read
Panel lets smoking ban stay in place
Bar owners and their backers asked for an exception in their establishments
Despite tales of empty bars and upset regulars, opponents of Hawaii's no-smoking law failed to persuade lawmakers last night to pass a bill that would have created a special liquor license allowing people to light up.
Those behind the permit proposed under House Bill 1800, which was deferred by a House Judiciary Committee, argued it would have helped bars, restaurants and clubs that have struggled since the strict smoking ban began three months ago.
Ronald Savoy Jr., a bartender at the Hideaway Club in Waikiki and father of two children, blamed the law for scaring away customers and cutting his pay by 70 percent.
"My question to you is, Are you going to pay my bills? This month was the first time since I moved into my new home that I haven't been able to pay my rent," the 36-year-old told lawmakers, saying he used to take home $200 a day but is now only making $26. "Are you going to be there when I have to pack my things and move my family out? I didn't think so."
But for more than two hours, legislators also heard from residents who praised the clean air as well as representatives of organizations who repeatedly warned about tobacco's health risks and asked that the 3-month-old law be given more time to work.
They cited numerous studies done in states with similar controls that showed anti-smoking laws did not put bars and clubs that rely on alcohol sales out of business. Eventually, proponents claimed, the law helped smokers quit and brought businesses a new wave of customers who used to stay away from hazy bars.
"This law is one of the best public measures to ever be passed in Hawaii," said Debbie Odo, director of tobacco control with the American Lung Association in Hawaii. "Not only will this law save lives, it will save lives and will have a positive impact on our economy."
Lawmakers deferred the measure, with Judiciary Chairman Tommy Water saying that changing the law now would be premature.
Lance Gomes, owner of the Pigskin Sports Bar on Kapiolani Boulevard, said the proposal introduced by Rep. Bob Nakasone (D, Kahului-Paia) would have been a "win-win" compromise because it gave options for smokers and nonsmokers.
"You are giving people a choice of where they want to go," he said. "That's all they are asking."
Gomes, who has seen 30 percent to 50 percent fewer clients since the law took effect in November, has publicly challenged the state's ban by letting smokers puff on their cigarettes in his bar, an action he said was the only way to keep his business alive.
"The government is making me be a criminal," he said.
The state Department of Health, relying mostly on complaints from patrons, has issued noncompliant bar owners "hundreds" of warnings, said Julian Lipsher, public-health educator for the department.
Although Hawaii's law has penalties ranging from $100 to $500 for repeated offenders, the Department of Health still must get approval for administrative rules to enforce the new law, which could take time, Lipsher said.
Lipsher showed up at yesterday's hearing despite receiving a letter from Kawika Crowley, co-chairman of Hawaii Smokers Alliance, warning him to stop opposing the proposed exemption.
"We are in this for the long, long haul, and it will get ugly," wrote Crowley, who called yesterday's hearing "a huge victory" because it brought out the concerns of businesses to the attention of lawmakers.
"We didn't have a great victory yet," he said, adding he has collected some 5,000 signatures against the no-smoking law. "But they are going to have to listen to us."
Read
Some Bars Pan Hawaii's Tough Smoking Ban
Feb 18, 2007
By MARK NIESSE, Associated Press Writer
HONOLULU (AP) -- There's a revolt going on in Hawaii as some bar owners openly defy the state's new anti-smoking law, one of the nation's toughest, by letting their customers light up.
So far, they're getting away with it, although a recent protest smoke-in brought police to one downtown bar.
"We're being rebellious. Look at the Boston Tea Party. Look at Prohibition. They rebelled and they won," said Fred Remington, vice president of the company that runs O'Toole's Irish Pub.
Hawaii is one of 16 states that have banned smoking in all public places. Its law, which took effect in November, even covers open malls and popular outdoor dining areas, and it doesn't allow bars or offices to set aside rooms for smokers. Penalties start at $100 and increase up to $500 after the third offense. Bars could lose liquor licenses and customers could be fined $50.
Backers said the law was needed to protect the health of employees in bars and restaurants who can't avoid inhaling secondhand smoke, but bar owners complain that it is ruining their business.
Lance Gomes, owner of Pigskins Sports Bar, said the ban cost him nearly half of his customers, although business has rebounded since he decided to disobey the law.
Honolulu police have not issued any citations against defiant smokers, said spokeswoman Michelle Yu. The law requires a member of the public to make a report before an officer will investigate, and then it's up to the offer how to handle the violation.
"What we're hoping for is the public's cooperation," Yu said.
During a recent protest by angry bar owners at O'Toole's, several dozen people crowded the pub to light up cigars and cigarettes, but after police arrived everyone put out their smokes.
Remington helped rally the 93-member Hawaii Bar Owners Association, which filed a lawsuit in January against the state in a bid to overturn the law. The legal action claims the government has violated their private property rights.
Similar lawsuits have been brought in other states but not one has succeeded, said Deborah Zysman, director of the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Hawaii.
"We're pretty confident that our law will stand," she said. "We have always been pretty certain that it's a relatively small number of establishments that are acting as scofflaws. The overwhelming majority of restaurants and businesses are following the rules."
Bartender Brenda Kennedy-Rogers, who works at Cha Cha Cha in Waikiki, argues that people expect to be able to smoke in a pub.
"If I'm drinking, I want to be smoking," Kennedy-Rogers said as she took a drag outside the Aloha Tower Marketplace. "They keep taking more and more of our rights away."
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Anti-Smoking Law Protest Heats Up
The Statehouse rally to fight back against the State's smoking ban turned into an actual confrontation just down the road. It happened Friday at O'Toole's bar, where a group of smokers and bar owners gathered after their rally to have a smoke, an illegal smoke inside the bar to make a statement. But as protestors puffed, Deborah Zysman called police.
"I'm at O'Toole's downtown and I would just like to report that they are allowing smoking indoors at the bar," said Zysman, director of the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Hawaii.
Zysman helped enact Hawaii's smoking ban last November. When the protestors found out she called police they came out to confront her.
"Debrah Zysman right? Is that your name? You're the one in charge of coalition for Tobacco Free Hawaii! Yes, you are our favorite, favorite person," a protester said sarcastically.
"85% of the public supports the law," Zysman said to the protester.
The protester responded, "That is BS girl where do you come up with these numbers?"
As the protestors waited for police to arrive, they decided to abide by the smoking law and stand in the road, twenty feet away from the bar's door.
"We are abiding by the law. Sorry folks, we are abiding by the law," a protestor told drivers.
When police finally arrived, about 40 minutes later, an officer caught one smoker red-handed, smoking in the bar.
"I'm going to give you a warning but if I have to come back you will be getting cited ok?," said the officer.
But as soon as the officer walked away, the man lit up again.
While Zysman plans to take the matter to court, some smokers say they'll be taking their smoke breaks where ever they want.
"It's a civil right's issue totally !" said a protestor.
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Bill Status
SB1970
Generated on 2/11/2007 4:44:26 PM
Measure Title: RELATING TO SMOKING.
Report Title: Smoking
Description: Establishes a Class 15, smoking establishment dispensers' license under the liquor law and allows smoking in the enclosed premises of establishments issued a Class 15 license. Exempts class 15 from restricted smoking areas.
Package: None
Companion:
Introducer(s): HANABUSA (BR)
Current Referral: HTH, JDL
Date Status Text
1/24/2007 S Introduced.
1/26/2007 S Passed First Reading.
1/30/2007 S Referred to HTH, JDL.
2/6/2007 S The committee(s) on HTH has scheduled a public hearing on 02-12-07 at 1:15 pm in conference room 016.
$ = Appropriation measure
ConAm = Constitutional Amendment
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See "Ban the Ban" Smokers Protest Photos
