Lawmakers consider strict, statewide smoking ban
Posted: Thursday, February 14, 2008
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- State lawmakers can't seem to quit their smoking ban habit.
A year after they appeared to reach a compromise on a statewide smoking ban -- which came after several years of debating similar bans -- senators were at it again on Wednesday. And there's no end in sight.
The question they are struggling with: Should city councils and county boards, along with local voters, be able to opt out of a statewide smoking ban, should one be approved?
They didn't answer the question on Wednesday but did delay a final vote on the smoking ban bill (LB395) so that they have the option of removing an opt-out clause now in the measure.
Last year, the Legislature was speeding toward approval of a smoking ban that included the opt-out provision. But Sen. Joel Johnson of Kearney, the bill's sponsor, changed his mind about a compromise he had agreed to and pulled the bill off the agenda before a final vote. The compromise was to include an opt-out provision for cities and counties, and it helped him muster the support needed to get the bill past two rounds of debate.
"I came to deeply regret my decision," Johnson, a retired surgeon, said Wednesday of the compromise he agreed to last year.
Some lawmakers seemed to regret reaching a deal with Johnson last year at all.
Sen. Deb Fischer of Valentine said she was deeply distressed by Johnson's efforts to delay a final vote on the bill Wednesday. The delay allowed senators to begin debating an amendment from Johnson that would remove the opt-out clause.
They did not vote on the amendment. The ban would go into effect a year after approval.
Most senators weren't offended by Johnson's attempt to rework the bill into a strict, statewide ban that couldn't be avoided by cities and counties.
"We change our minds every day. We have the right to do that," said Sen. Ray Aguilar of Grand Island. On Tuesday, the Grand Island City Council decided to put a proposed citywide smoking ban on the May 13 primary ballot.
Johnson said many local officials have asked him to remove any opt-out clause, fearing that such could cause a mishmash of smoking rules from town to town.
On the Net:
Nebraska Legislature: http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov
A year after they appeared to reach a compromise on a statewide smoking ban -- which came after several years of debating similar bans -- senators were at it again on Wednesday. And there's no end in sight.
The question they are struggling with: Should city councils and county boards, along with local voters, be able to opt out of a statewide smoking ban, should one be approved?
They didn't answer the question on Wednesday but did delay a final vote on the smoking ban bill (LB395) so that they have the option of removing an opt-out clause now in the measure.
Last year, the Legislature was speeding toward approval of a smoking ban that included the opt-out provision. But Sen. Joel Johnson of Kearney, the bill's sponsor, changed his mind about a compromise he had agreed to and pulled the bill off the agenda before a final vote. The compromise was to include an opt-out provision for cities and counties, and it helped him muster the support needed to get the bill past two rounds of debate.
"I came to deeply regret my decision," Johnson, a retired surgeon, said Wednesday of the compromise he agreed to last year.
Some lawmakers seemed to regret reaching a deal with Johnson last year at all.
Sen. Deb Fischer of Valentine said she was deeply distressed by Johnson's efforts to delay a final vote on the bill Wednesday. The delay allowed senators to begin debating an amendment from Johnson that would remove the opt-out clause.
They did not vote on the amendment. The ban would go into effect a year after approval.
Most senators weren't offended by Johnson's attempt to rework the bill into a strict, statewide ban that couldn't be avoided by cities and counties.
"We change our minds every day. We have the right to do that," said Sen. Ray Aguilar of Grand Island. On Tuesday, the Grand Island City Council decided to put a proposed citywide smoking ban on the May 13 primary ballot.
Johnson said many local officials have asked him to remove any opt-out clause, fearing that such could cause a mishmash of smoking rules from town to town.
On the Net:
Nebraska Legislature: http://www.nebraskalegislature.gov
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KELVIN wrote on Feb 14, 2008 3:44 PM: