No smoking in bars?

While the Boise City Council is preparing an ordinance to ban smoking in the city’s bars, council members in Nampa and Caldwell say they haven’t considered a similar ban and don’t plan to enact one.
“Local and city governments try to pass ordinances that protect individuals, but in this issue these are adults 21 and older that have a choice,” Nampa City Council member Stephen Kren said. “I have a hard time passing an ordinance on private property for adults. It should be the individual that makes that decision.”
Kren, who was first elected to the council in 1995, said that the issue of stricter smoking regulations hasn’t been addressed during his tenure and was unlikely to become an issue in the near future.
The council hasn’t been approached by concerned citizens or anti-smoking groups asking for a ban, though council members would be willing to discuss the issue if it’s raised, he said.
Nampa City Council member Curtis Homer also said that he would be willing to discuss a potential smoking ban, but it hasn’t been an obvious public concern.
“Until it’s brought up, it’s not something that I’ll consider, and nothing’s been brought up yet,” he said.
Caldwell City Council member Jim Blacker said the council has not discussed a smoking ban in Caldwell bars either. He said it was a complicated issue that citizens in other cities, including Boise, have brought to the forefront, but Caldwell residents haven’t raised a stink.
Blacker said he believes owners of bars and other establishments should make their own business decisions about whether to allow smoking.
“It’s a tough thing to decide upon. Putting a mandate on people is very difficult. I’m not sure it’s our responsibility, not on a city level,” Blacker said.
Caldwell City Council member Jim Dakan said he would also side with private enterprise.
“I don’t think we’ve got any business telling people what they can and can’t do. If a bar has a smoking section and I don’t like that, I don’t have to go there,” he said.
Adrean Casper, a representative for the American Heart Association and the Smoke Free Idaho coalition, said that the proposed smoking ban in Boise aims to protect bar workers from inhaling second-hand smoke, which has been linked to increased cancer and respiratory illnesses. While Smoke Free Idaho’s efforts have focused on Boise, she said the coalition would like to see similar “Free Air Ordinances” proposed in other cities.
“We look forward to working with all city councils to protect all workers from the harms of second hand smoke,” she said. “Every worker deserves the right to breath clean air.”
Nampa bar owner Damonn Barr of Barb’s Tavern said the whole issue boils down to individual choices. He said a bar owner can choose to allow smoking, employees can choose to work there and patrons can choose to smoke.
“It’s pretty straightforward to me. As a worker’s right, they’re just looking for an excuse to ban smoking. It should be my choice as a business owner. This is the land of the free, and I should be able to choose,” he said.