Augusta, GA is amending their smoke-free ordinance to more match the glorious ANR model. In addition to extending their existing ban, this will ban e-cigarettes in hundreds of workplaces already covered under the existing language.
Augusta, GA - Official Website
Commissioner's contact info -- Augusta, GA - Official Website - Augusta Commission
If someone could put the names, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses into format similar to what our Call to Action's look like, I'd appreciate it.
A public hearing at 10 a.m. :shakes head:
Below is a letter CASAA wrote to the the chief sponsor of the ordinance and the town's attorney in August, before the legislation was official proposed. They didn't remove e-cigarettes, but they did define them separately and include them in the title. Unfortunately, the city's website only bothered to note that it was a ban on SMOKING (public notice here). I'm hoping to get that changed.
Augusta, GA - Official Website
Commissioner's contact info -- Augusta, GA - Official Website - Augusta Commission
If someone could put the names, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses into format similar to what our Call to Action's look like, I'd appreciate it.
Augusta, Georgia invites public input with respect to these proposed amendments and has set aside two Public Hearings for this purpose. The time allotted for each participant to speak may be limited to five minutes. The Public Hearings are: Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. at the Augusta, Georgia Commission Chambers, 530 Greene Street, 8th Floor, Augusta, Georgia and Monday, October 17, 2011 at 6:00 p.m. at Julian Smith Casino, 2200 Broad Street, Augusta Georgia.
A public hearing at 10 a.m. :shakes head:
Below is a letter CASAA wrote to the the chief sponsor of the ordinance and the town's attorney in August, before the legislation was official proposed. They didn't remove e-cigarettes, but they did define them separately and include them in the title. Unfortunately, the city's website only bothered to note that it was a ban on SMOKING (public notice here). I'm hoping to get that changed.
Mr. Mackencie and Commissioner Brigham,
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[FONT=arial][SIZE=2][COLOR=black]Having reviewed the model ordinance distributed at a recent meeting of the Augusta Commission, the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association ([URL="http://www.casaa.org/"]CASAA[/URL]) urges you to not include electronic cigarettes in the proposed changes to Augustas indoor smoking laws. Electronic cigarettes emit NO smoke and pose NO known health risks to users or nonusers. CASAA is a non-profit organization that works to ensure the availability of reduced harm alternatives to smoking tobacco products and to provide the public with truthful information about such alternatives. [/SIZE][/FONT]
Smoking bans were enacted for the purpose of protecting non-smokers from the potentially harmful effects of second-hand smoke. But electronic cigarettes have not been shown to harm bystanders or users. The FDA did not find any toxic or cancer-causing substances in the vapor. In fact, all evidence to date shows that the low health risks associated with electronic cigarettes are comparable to other smokeless tobacco products and to the risks of using nicotine gum, lozenges, patch, and inhalers.
There are enormous differences between smoke and vapor. Smoke is created by the process of combustion. Setting tobacco on fire creates tar, carbon monoxide, airborne particulates, dozens of carcinogens and thousands of other hazardous chemicals. Inhaling these substances in smoke is the cause of 99% of tobacco-related diseases and deaths.
Vapor from an electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) does not contain any of these substances. Vapor, while resembling smoke, is not a product of combustion but rather the product of the process of condensation. Vapor is created by heating a liquid to the point of evaporation.
Dr. Murray Laugesen of Health New Zealand tested e-cigarette vapor for over 50 cigarette smoke toxicants. No such toxicant was found. Dr. Laugesen stated, Relative to lethal tobacco smoke emissions, e-cigarette emissions appear to be several magnitudes safer. E-cigarettes are akin to a medicinal nicotine inhalator in safety, dose, and addiction potential. [1]
Dr. Michael Siegel of Boston University School of Public Health reviewed the available evidence on the safety and effectiveness of e-cigarettesincluding the testing conducted by the FDA in 2009and concluded, A preponderance of the available evidence shows them to be much safer than tobacco cigarettes and comparable in toxicity to conventional nicotine replacement products. Dr. Siegel states that there is no justification for banning the indoor use of e-cigarettes based on potential harm to bystanders. [2]
The majority of consumers use e-cigarettes as a complete replacement for all their tobacco cigarettes, and most of the rest use e-cigarettes to reduce the number of cigarettes per day they smoke. These products are improving the health of their users, and could save the lives of many more smokersprovided their use is not discouraged. [3, 4]
Many e-cigarette users first discover the safer devices when they see them being used where smoking isn't allowed. Banning indoor use, forcing e-cigarette users outside, removes an incentive for smokers to switch to an alternative that could very well reduce their risks of smoking-related disease.
Recently, different locales have chosen to take different stances towards e-cigarettes.
- Delaware County, Indiana initially included e-cigarettes in their proposed smoking regulations, but a City Commissioner whose daughter found success with an e-cigarette sponsored a successful amendment to remove them.
- Tacoma-Pierce County, Washington held several public hearings when they announced their intention to include e-cigarettes in their smoking regulations. After 40-50 e-cigarette users testified against the inclusion, the Tacoma-Pierce County Board of Health severely scaled back their regulations, instead choosing to only ban the use of e-cigarettes in public places where children are permitted. A copy of that regulation is available upon request.
If, for some reason, it is not possible to remove e-cigarettes from the proposed legislation, CASAA urges you to define them separately and explicitly mention them in the title of the ordinance so that the public and news media is aware of the scope of the legislation.
Very truly yours,
Gregory Conley
Board Member -- Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association
References:
1. Laugesen M. Health New Zealand. Poster Presentation at the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco conference, Dublin, April 30, 2009. http://www.healthnz.co.nz/DublinEcigBenchtopHandout.pdf
2. Cahn and Siegel. Electronic cigarettes as a harm reduction strategy for tobacco control. Macmillan Publishers Ltd. 0197-5897 Journal of Public Health Policy 116. http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/centers-institutes/population-development/files/article.jphp.pdf
3. Heavner K, Dunworth J, Bergen P, Nissen C, Phillips CV. Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) as potential tobacco harm reduction products: Results of an online survey of e-cigarette users. Tobacco Harm Reduction 2010 Yearbook, Chapter 19. http://tobaccoharmreduction.org/wpapers/011v1.pdf
4. Etter JF, Bullen C. Electronic cigarette : users profile, utilization, satisfaction and perceived efficacy. Addiction 2011 DOI: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03505.x. Electronic cigarette: users profile, utilization, satisfaction and perceived efficacy - Etter - 2011 - Addiction - Wiley Online Library (accessed June 2011) Full Text: Electronic Cigarettes