RALEIGH—In
response to rising concerns over public health, Representatives
Jennifer Weiss and Rick Glazier introduced legislation that will ban
smoking in all state government buildings. Furthermore, the legislation
overturns a law preventing local governments, such as municipalities
and counties, from enacting comprehensive indoor smoking bans.
“We
applaud Representatives Weiss and Glazier for working to protect the
health of our state,” stated NCPIRG Advocate Rob Thompson. “Secondhand
smoke is a proven killer. Finally, the state of North Carolina can lead
by example by banning smoking in state government buildings.”
Smoking kills approximately 440,000 people annually. Unfortunately,
smoking doesn’t just affect smokers. Secondhand smoke leads to between
25,000 and 73,000 non-smoker deaths each year, and the Centers for
Disease Control has concluded that there is no safe level of exposure
to secondhand smoke. As a result, nearly 1,000 cities and several
states have taken action to protect its citizens by banning smoking
inside all workplaces, including bars and restaurants.
“We
hope that cities and counties across North Carolina will support this
legislation, so that they can take action to preserve the public
health,” continued Thompson.
Not
only does secondhand smoke contribute to thousands of premature deaths
every year, but it also contributes to the rapidly rising cost of
health care. According to the Society of Actuaries, secondhand smoke
costs the nation $10 billion dollars in health care costs per year.
While
it’s critical to ban smoking in state government buildings and to allow
localities to implement strong measures to prevent secondhand smoke,
NCPIRG believes that all workplaces should be smoke-free.
“All
of North Carolina’s residents deserve the right to breathe clean air,
and smoking should not be a condition for employment in our state. This
legislation is strong step towards achieving that goal,” stated
Thompson.
