Smoking Bill Snuffed Out in Committee
Oklahoma committee kills anti-smoking bill
By Michael McNutt
An Oklahoma Senate committee snuffed out a bill Monday that would have let cities and towns craft their own anti-smoking laws.
The 6-2 vote to not pass Senate Bill 36 assures that the idea is dead for the next two years, or the length of the 54th legislative session, said Sen. Greg Treat, chairman of the Senate General Government Committee.
Opponents said the bills would have been unfair to businesses that already made separate smoking sections and that they should not be penalized for playing by the rules.
Sen. Kyle Loveless, R-Oklahoma City, offered an amendment in committee to grandfather those restaurants in, but it failed 6-2.
WoW! Common sense prevails!
With 100 plus tribal casinos (were smoking is always allowed) SB 36 would have put the screws to small bars and restaurants with separately ventilated (and expensive) smoking rooms. This is a great day for freedom in Oklahoma!