By Sarah Green
KHI News Service
TOPEKA, Jan. 31
The fate of a bill to ban smoking in public places statewide is now in the Senate”s hands.
Senate Bill 37 passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee without recommendation on Wednesday, allowing debate to continue on the proposal but without a favorable note of support from the committee.
It includes an amendment by Sen. Derek Schmidt, R-Independence, allowing counties by vote of their commissioners to opt-out of the state-wide ban. It also would allow a county ballot on the issue, if 5 percent of registered voters signed a petition protesting the commissioners” decision to opt-out.
Cities would not be allowed to opt-out of the ban, but could pass stricter ordinances, Schmidt said.
Sen. David Haley, D-Kansas City, said he would not support the amendment, but preferred the issue be discussed on the Senate floor.
“I think we should let the bill float or fall on its own merit,” he said. “It”s a wholly different bill now.”
Schmidt warned the committee that the bill would not pass without the amendment.
“The question we have to ask is what we are trying to accomplish in this debate,” he said. “I guarantee this will not become law in its current form.”
After the meeting, Schmidt said he would continue to support Senate Bill 37 during floor debate.
“I think the bill”s prospect of becoming a law vastly improved this morning,” he said. “This substantially increases the number of public places where people can enjoy a meal or work in a smoke-free environment. I think it”s good public policy.”
The committee”s action came after three weeks of debate and numerous amendments narrowing the scope of the bill. As it stands, almost all workplaces including restaurants, bars, retail stores, health-care institutions, schools, and county and municipal buildings would become smoke-free if the bill becomes law. Notable exceptions include commercial truck cabs; passenger train smoking cars; veteran”s homes and Class A clubs, such as American Legion and VFW clubs.
However, the bill”s sponsor and many anti-tobacco activists were not happy with the committee”s decision to amend the bill.
Sen. David Wysong, R-Mission Hills, the bill”s sponsor, did not attend the committee meeting. He said he had no further comment.
“Basically, I don”t consider it my bill anymore,” he said. “If you want anything else, I think you should call Sen. Schmidt, because I consider it his bill now.”
Lisa Benlon, governmental relations director for the American Cancer Society, said she was “extremely disappointed” with the amendment. Her organization has withdrawn its support for the bill.
“Some of the members of the committee don”t see the merits of having a simple, strong and fair statewide bill,” she said. “For the state to be putting exemptions in something like that creates a patchwork of laws that are difficult to enforce. If it goes to the Senate floor, I hope they consider removing the Schmidt amendment.”
In Kansas, tobacco-related health costs total more than $720 million a year.
In other tobacco-related news:
The Senate Health Care Task Force discussed comprehensive tobacco control programs and the fate of an additional $15 million to $16 million scheduled to come to the state in April 2008 from the Master Settlement Agreement with the nation”s major cigarette companies.
Representatives from the Kansas Health Institute, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, the Kansas Academy of Family Physicians, the American Cancer Society, the Tobacco Free Kansas Coalition and others spoke on the need to allocate any additional funds from the tobacco settlement for comprehensive tobacco control, education and cessation programs.
Immediately following the task force”s lunch-time meeting, the Senate Health and Public Welfare Committee acted on the request of its chairman, Sen. Jim Barnett, R-Emporia, and introduced a bill that would dedicate any additional MSA money Kansas might receive on those programs.
Sarah Green is a staff writer for KHI News Service, which specializes in coverage of health issues facing Kansans. She can be reached at
sgreen@khi.org
or at 785-233-5443, ext. 118.