Delaware County, Indiana Call to Action! (E-cigs in smoking ban)

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Hearing and vote to take place on June 6th

CASAA.org

 

[crashinbrn]

bump for the cause

 

[ShannonA]

Bump again... curious why this one's not posted in the CASAA forum as well

 

[TheCooleys]

Just sent the emails. Did you know it only takes 10-15 emails for a commissioner to feel the "avalanche" of how people feel. So, please take the time to do so. Thanks for everyone's support.

 

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The hearing is tomorrow, and we're unsure if anyone will be there to speak on behalf of e-cigarette users.

Sadly, the Star Press ran another article about the smoking ban. The author, despite having been informed that e-cigs are included in the ban and having a rather lengthy article, did not mention e-cigarettes.

Delaware County smoking ban to get public hearing | The Star Press | thestarpress.com

 

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THE BILL NOW APPEARS LIKELY TO PASS. WE NEED A SPEAKER

The three commissioners have been divided on the issue. Commissioner Don Dunnuck, who as an attorney represents the county health board, said he supports the ban. Commissioner Todd Donati has said he is leaning toward voting against the ban proposal but is still considering public input. Commissioner Larry Bledsoe said he is leaning toward voting for the proposal after hearing overwhelming support for it and talking to bar employees who wanted to work in smoke-free environments.

Most want smoking ban, survey says | The Star Press | thestarpress.com

 

[Demarko]

It's just such common sense that vapor is not smoke, it makes it hard to argue... because it's SO obvious you end up feeling like you are trying to teach a 3 year old. (I live way across the country, I just wanted to throw this in..) They are so incredibly different as to make any such "lumping them together" insane. It would be like saying a pair of shoes should be banned, or a new kind of spoon. Except nicotine being absorbed by the lungs of the user, there's fundamentally NO similarity... And I predict lawsuits in the future.

 

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No vaper attended to speak -- not even a mall kiosk owner in Delaware County who will no longer be able to demonstrate e-cigs. In his case, I hope keeping his store open on a Monday night was worth no longer being allowed to demonstrate his products when this bill goes into effect.

Apparently Commissioner Donati asked the audience for opinions about e-cigarettes. Cecilia Williams, the local tobacco control prohibitionist, stated that they could be harmful.

Measure passed. E-cigs and cigarettes now banned in bars, restaurants, workplaces, etc.

EDIT: I WAS WRONG. THE BILL WAS AMENDED TO REMOVE E-CIGARETTES

Please send e-mails to the Commissioners to thank them.

 

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E-mail sent to Board members early this morning

SUBJECT: E-Cigarette Users Deserve a Hearing

Mr. [Commissioner],

Please consider amending the smoke-free legislation to exclude electronic smoking replace devices ('e-cigarettes'). There has been a complete dearth of public notice about their inclusion in this ban. E-cigarettes do not produce smoke. Thus, there are almost certainly e-cigarette users in Delaware County who, despite knowing that a smoking ban is up for a vote tonight, are unaware that they are about to be placed back outside with the smokers.

The Tacoma-Pierce County, Washington Board of Health recently held hearings on an ordinance that would have included e-cigarettes in their already existing smoke-free policy. Tacoma Weekly and The News Tribune, the major papers for the area, wrote several stories about the ban. In part because of these articles providing citizens with notice of the legislation, e-cigarette users showed up to testify -- twenty-six e-cigarette supporters came to the first hearing. Thanks to public pressure, the Board of Health agreed to only ban e-cigs in public places where children are allowed.

The polls being released about the abundance of support for this expansion are reflecting the public's desire for a smoking ban. The inclusion of e-cigarettes was, as far as I know, not covered in any of the papers. I e-mailed Keith Roysdon of the Star Press and spoke to him on the phone, yet none of his articles have mentioned e-cigarettes. I don't believe that public hearing notices having noted the inclusion of e-cigarettes. In fact, the ordinance itself is not available online.

Citizens of Delaware County deserve the chance to know that e-cigarettes are being included in a smoke-free policy. As it is, the first time e-cigarette users in Delaware County will find out about this ban will be when a post-vote newspaper article mentions it, or they are cited for breaking the law.

Thank you,

And an e-mail I sent a few minutes ago

SUBJECT: E-cigarette amendment

Mr. Dunnuck, Donati, and Bledsoe:

Thank you for amending the smoke-free ordinance to exclude e-cigarettes from the definition of 'smoking.'

Considering there was not an e-cigarette user in attendance to echo points that I've made in my e-mails, it would have been extremely easy to simply not mention e-cigarettes and pass the bill as written.

Your integrity is much-appreciated.

Thank you,

Thank you letters can be sent to: ddunnuck@co.delaware.in.us; tdonati@co.delaware.in.us; lbledsoe@co.delaware.in.us

 

[JustJulie]

Woots! Awesome news. Seems like we're on a roll here.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to write or call . . . it clearly made a difference.

I'll definitely be sending some thank you emails tomorrow.

 

[ogredog]

great news...i vape to that!

 

[Thulium]

Woots! Awesome news. Seems like we're on a roll here.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to write or call . . . it clearly made a difference.

I'll definitely be sending some thank you emails tomorrow.

Thank you emails are always a great idea. Especially in this case where it is still possible someone could try to add e-cigs to the smoking ban in a separate legislation, legislators tend to actually READ positive feedback. Flattery speaks to the heart of a politician.

 

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BREAKING: Smoking ban approved | The Star Press | thestarpress.com

The commissioners had varied in their support for the proposal leading up to the vote, which followed the last-minute removal of e-cigarettes from the proposal. The electronic smoking devices had not been an issue and Donati had to ask what they were before Dunnuck moved that they be exempted.

Dunnuck was the County Commissioner most in favor of a smoking ban, and it turns out he was the one who moved to exempt them!

Also, an e-mail I sent to the author referred to e-cigs as 'electronic smoking replacement devices.' Why he felt the need to eliminate 'replacement' I don't know.

 

[Demarko]

Whenever I see the Pierce County decision mentioned and it leads to positive things, I can't help but want to thank Thulium and Kim from the Vaporium again - so here goes, thanks guys!

This is good news, and I'm composing a thank you letter now. (To the board).

 

[Demarko]

I read some of the comments, and I can't help but chuckle. Tons of non-smokers saying they will go to bars more frequently, that new bars will open, business will be better... About a third of bars closed in Washington State after the smoking ban here went into effect, and I haven't seen a new one in years. Sometimes, a new one opens where another one closed down... but there's an empty shell for every time that happens.

 

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Delaware County commissioners unanimously approve smoking ban - The Ball State Daily News - Ball State University

A ban on electronic cigarettes were also part of the proposed ordinance. This section of the ordinance was removed after a discussion between commissioner Donati and Tobacco-Free Coalition leader Cecilia Williams.

Williams said electronic cigarettes could be harmful because they have not been regulated by the FDA, but county commissioners doubted the risks.

I wish I'd been there to see this!

 

[Demarko]

Delaware County commissioners unanimously approve smoking ban - The Ball State Daily News - Ball State University



I wish I'd been there to see this!

Just guessing, but I bet she was saying a bunch of "maybe" and "what if" and "don't know" and that made him think?

 

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I just spoke to Commissioner Dunnuck on the phone. Turns out his daughter uses an e-cig, and seeing as how is no evidence of harm to bystanders, he didn't see the point in including them.

This doesn't seem significant, but it is. Think back to all the indoor smoking / vaping bans that have passed during the past 2 years, and how many amendments to completely remove e-cigarettes from the definition of 'smoking' have passed? I can't remember any.

Imagine if we get DeKalb County to drop e-cigs. That'd be 2 victories (Delaware and DeKalb) and a much-better-than-nothing compromise (Tacoma-Pierce County) in a matter of 2 weeks.

Please, if you are reading this, get a personal story about e-cigs out to the DeKalb legislators. They don't want to see form letters, but past letters you've written about smoking bans that include e-cigs can be adapted to fit this situation. It's easy to comment on threads about bans, but that only matters so much in the end.

 

[Demarko]

Didn't Mr. Muri from Tacoma-Pierce County send a letter to DeKalb as well, saying their findings and providing them with some information?

 

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Didn't Mr. Muri from Tacoma-Pierce County send a letter to DeKalb as well, saying their findings and providing them with some information?

I sent a FB message with a "good news" e-mail about Delaware County, and then asked him if he'd written to the DeKalb legislators.