Ordinance to ban smoking and e-cig use in all workplaces to be introduced in South Bend, Indiana

[Bill Godshall]

Later this evening, an ordinance will be introduced in the South Bend Common Council to ban smoking and e-cig use in all workplaces. The proposed ordinance (Number 24-12) begins on page 58 at
http://www.southbendin.gov/WebLink8/DocView.aspx?id=27431&dbid=0

Contact information for South Bend Common Council is at
http://www.southbendin.gov/WebLink8/DocView.aspx?id=24068&dbid=0

The South Bend Tribune already published an editorial endorsing the proposal (but not citing e-cig use ban) at
A smoking ban for South Bend - southbendtribune.com

 

[JustJulie]

"E-cigarettes produce a vapor of undetermined and potentially harmful substances, which may appear similar to the smoke emitted by traditional tobacco products. Their use in workplaces and public places where smoking of traditional tobacco products is prohibited creates concern and confusion and leads to difficulties in enforcing smoking prohibitions."

 

[sanjosse]

If the great vapors of Indiana are looking to shoot their specific council member a quick email, I've compiled a list of their respective emails here;

SOUTH BEND COMMON COUNCIL MEMBERS 1-12-12
2012 (Revised 4-23-12)

1ST DISTRICT
TIM SCOTT( KAREN)
E-MAIL: TSCOTT@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

2ND DISTRICT
HENRY DAVIS, JR. (VIRESSA)
E-MAIL: HDAVIS@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

3RD DISTRICT
VALERIE SCHEY (JOHN)
E-MAIL: VSCHEY@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

4TH DISTRICT
DR. FRED FERLIC
E-MAIL: FFERLIC@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

5TH DISTRICT
DR. DAVID A. VARNER (PAT)
E-MAIL: DVARNER@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

6TH DISTRICT
OLIVER J. DAVIS (Vice-President)
E-MAIL: ODAVIS@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

AT LARGE
DEREK D. DIETER (SUZY) - President
E-MAIL: DDIETER@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

AT LARGE
GAVIN FERLIC
E-MAIL: GFERLIC@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

AT LARGE
KAREN L. WHITE - Chairperson Committee of the Whole
E-MAIL: KWHITE@SOUTHBENDIN.GOV

note to mods: If this is not allowed please delete with my sincerest apologies.

 

[Neloish]

I could say water is a liquid that appears to look like vodka, therefor it creates confusion, and it's use is banned in the workplace.

 

[sherid]

If those who are trying to enforce a smoking ban are so blatantly stupid that they cannot tell the difference between an e cig made of plastic and a tobacco cig wrapped in paper, between a Marlboro that must be lit with fire and an e cig that draws from a battery, between the smell of tobacco and the non-existent smell of vapor; then those people should be fired from their role of enforcer due to their blatant STUPIDITY.

 

[Bill Godshall]

Per news article at
http://www.wsbt.com/news/wsbt-south-bend-preparing-to-debate-smoking-ban-20120606,0,5033580.story

Jill Sabo of Smoke Free St. Joseph County has said at least four of nine members of the council support it, and it would bring South Bend in compliance with other large cities in the state including Elkhart, Fort Wayne, Evansville, Bloomington, West Lafayette and Indianapolis.

Except that only the recently enacted Indianapolis ordinance bans e-cig use in workplaces.

 

[capt.n.coke]

We are rallying who we can, but none in our club are from South Bend.

 

[Hoosier]

I've shot a message to the only vaper I know that lives in the area with links and asking him to forward it on to others in the area. (Notice it is Smoke Free Indiana again...)

 

[mwplefty]

Well, the Indoor Smoking Ban in Indiana was rushed through the state legislature since Mitch Daniels' gubernatorial term is almost up and he needed to do "one last big thing" before he's out.

 

[Vocalek]

Well, the Indoor Smoking Ban in Indiana was rushed through the state legislature since Mitch Daniels' gubernatorial term is almost up and he needed to do "one last big thing" before he's out.

Unless I'm mistaken, the state law only prohibits real smoke, not vapor. South Bend officials want to pretend that vapor is smoke.

 

[caffeinator]

Unless I'm mistaken, the state law only prohibits real smoke, not vapor. South Bend officials want to pretend that vapor is smoke.

Yeah, but like when I first showed my PV to my Mom, her response was..."Well, it LOOKS like smoking?" So, I told her to close her eyes..then I blew a vape right at her face. She didn't even notice it at first, then was like oh, that smells nice...

Like many, she hates the very appearance or even the thought of smoking. So, I can see how in an office if you have clouds of vape flying around, they might have a concern.

Book=Cover.

 

[KevNewEngland]

Yeah, but like when I first showed my PV to my Mom, her response was..."Well, it LOOKS like smoking?"

Like many, she hates the very appearance of smoking. So, I can see how in an office if you have clouds of vape flying around, they might have a concern.

Our manager at work just put into effect a new rule: no ecigs in the building. I asked him why. He said: "because I said so." then he said: "because it's still smoking". I've know the guy for 20 years. When I first stared vaping over a year ago, he saw it and asked me about it. I explained it to him. At the time, he said: "You haven't really quit anything." I just walked away. Because the guy is SO anti-smoking, like you said, if it looks like smoking, it's smoking. Very frustrating dealing with some people.
Oh, and rules were made to be broken.

 

[Bill Godshall]

An article stating that 4 of 9 South Bend Common Council members are sponsoring the ordinance
Backers tout proposed Indiana smoking ban | The Courier-Journal | courier-journal.com

I suspect that some of the ordinance sponsors aren't even aware of the e-cigarette provision in the bill.
None of the news stories about this bill have mentioned e-cigarettes.

 

[Hoosier]

I suspect that some of the ordinance sponsors aren't even aware of the e-cigarette provision in the bill.
None of the news stories about this bill have mentioned e-cigarettes.

Unknown, none of the news stories I saw out of Indianapolis, except for an article in a newspaper, mentioned the e-cigarette provision in the Marion County City Council bill, but the council members did know about it. The media that the majority of folks get their information from never mentioned it in stories of the Indianapolis ban.

The lack of this detail, in the news, was confirmed when talking to a couple of smokers at a concert recently as they only knew of the tobacco smoking ban and had no idea it applied to e-cigarettes.

 

[Vocalek]

Our manager at work just put into effect a new rule: no ecigs in the building. I asked him why. He said: "because I said so." then he said: "because it's still smoking". I've know the guy for 20 years. When I first stared vaping over a year ago, he saw it and asked me about it. I explained it to him. At the time, he said: "You haven't really quit anything." I just walked away. Because the guy is SO anti-smoking, like you said, if it looks like smoking, it's smoking. Very frustrating dealing with some people.
Oh, and rules were made to be broken.

He's wrong. You have quit damaging your lungs with the tar and particulates in smoke that are absent in vapor. You have also greatly reduced your exposure to cancer-causing chemicals, and to the poisonous gasses that damage blood vessels.

Perhaps you have no lung damage yet. But by the time I switched to an e-cig, I was hacking up yellow junk every morning and being kept awake by the sound of my wheezing. If vapor isn't less harmful than smoke, why have these symptoms gone away?

On this page, you will find several printable materials that can be useful to keep on hand when you run into people who don't understand what they are talking about. CASAA Printable Material

The Medical Infograph graphically illustrates the parts of the body affected by smoke, as opposed to vapor.
The tri-fold brochure (The Facts About Electronic Cigarettes) explains the facts and includes references to scientific publications.

 

[mwplefty]

Unless I'm mistaken, the state law only prohibits real smoke, not vapor. South Bend officials want to pretend that vapor is smoke.

That is right. Under the statewide law taking effect July 1, smoking (NOT vaping) will be banned in all public places with the exception of bars, horse racing facilities, all casinos, hookah/cigar lounges, and a few restaurants that prohibit minors under 21. Indianapolis has already banned vaping indoors.

 

[Bill Godshall]

If Indiana's new smokefree workplace law hadn't exempted bars, Indianapolis/Marion County wouldn't have banned e-cig use, and South Bend wouldn't be proposing to do the same.

The only municipalities that have introduced ordinances that ban smoking and e-cig use in workplaces are in states where smoking is still allowed in bars.

So if it weren't for bar owners and right-to-smoke advocates (who have defeated state legislation to ban smoking in bars), we wouldn't be facing these municipal ordinances that ban smoking and e-cig use in workplaces.

 

[EasyT]

I apologize for my lack of reading this particular forum nearly as often as i should. This my home town and i don't know if it's too late to help but if i can i surely will. It's more than troubling to read a proposed bill that was 95% about smoking and then all of a sudden a paragraph was slipped in about ecigs. I suppose that's how we pass bills in this country though. We write legislature that no one would say no to and then we add some frequently ignorant and often times malignant content in the middle.

 

[Bill Godshall]

The South Bend Common Council held a public hearing on the proposed ordinance last night, but the news clip didn't indicate that e-cigarettes were mentioned at the hearing (where bar owners opposed the proposed bar smoking ban and smokefree advocates urged its enactment).
Public discussion Monday on South Bend smoking ban proposal

EasyT wrote:

This my home town and i don't know if it's too late to help but if i can i surely will.

Please call/write/visit the South Bend Council members (contact info is on first page of this thread) ASAP and urge them to remove e-cigarettes from the proposal.

Although the proposed smoking ban would impact several dozen bars in South Bend, the e-cigarette usage ban would apply to several thousand (i.e. all) workplaces in South Bend.

 

[EasyT]

Thank you for the information and the links. I have emailed all the members of the council urging them to remove the electronic cigarette portion of the ordinance and included links provided by Casaa hoping that they will educate themselves on the matter at hand. Maybe they can at the very least make a decision based on science and knowledge.