ACTION ALERT: SMOKE FREE LAW IS UNDER ATTACK!

The Dr. Ron Davis Smoke Free law is UNDER ATTACK! Just six months into a successful implementation period, Representative Doug Geiss (D-Taylor) wants to reopen the issue and WEAKEN the law, potentially exposing thousands of Michigan’s citizens to the dangers of second hand smoke…AGAIN. WE CANNOT STAND FOR THIS!

Representative Geiss’s bill (HB 5803) proposes that we go back to the farce that was the non-smoking section by introducing "Legal Smoking
Rooms." Geiss claims that ventilation systems will take care of the noxious chemicals that leach through everything in their path. Study after study has shown that ventilation systems do not work and are incapable of removing the harm secondhand smoke poses.

The bill also exempts "licensed clubs" from the smoke free law. This exemption could potentially give any bar or restaurant the ability to file an affidavit with the state calling itself a membership club and thereby allowing smoking. No need to read between the lines here, folks, Representative Geiss wants Michigan’s servers to wade through the thick clouds of smoke once again.

The Regulatory Reform Committee will be taking up this bill today, November 10 at NOON in the House Office Building Room 326. If you’re in the Lansing area, please come and show your support for the Smoke Free Law. If you cannot make it to the hearing, CALL, FAX, AND EMAIL the members of the committee and tell them how much you LOVE smoke free Michigan and that you OPPOSE any changes to weaken the law:

Representative Bert Johnson *Chair
Phone: (517) 373-0144
Fax: (517) 373-8929
Email: bertjohnson@house.mi.gov

Harold Haugh *Vice-Chair
Phone: (517) 373-0854
Fax: (517) 373-5911
Email: HaroldHaugh@house.mi.gov

Representative Pam Byrnes
Phone: (517) 373-0828
Fax: (517) 373-5783
Email: pambyrnes@house.mi.gov

Representative Tim Melton
Phone: (517) 373-0475
Fax: (517) 373-5061
Email: timmelton@house.mi.gov

Representative Bettie Cook Scott
Phone: (517) 373-1776
Fax: (517) 373-8502
Email: bettiecookscott@house.mi.gov

Representative Woodrow Stanley
Phone: (517) 373-8808
Fax: (517) 373-5997
Email: WoodrowStanley@house.mi.gov

Representative Jon M. Switalski
Phone: (517) 373-1772
Fax: (517) 373-5906
Email: JonSwitalski@house.mi.gov

Representative Tory Rocca
Phone: (517) 373-7768
Email: ToryRocca@house.mi.gov

Representative Hugh Crawford
Phone: (517) 373-0827
Email: HughCrawford@house.mi.gov

Representative Rick Jones
Phone: (517) 373-0853
Email: RickJones@house.mi.gov

Representative Jim Stamas
Phone: (517) 373-1791
Email: JimStamas@house.mi.gov

MICHIGAN 38TH STATE TO GO SMOKE FREE!

Today, December 10, 2009, the Senate passed and the House concurred with HB 4377 which bans smoking in most public places statewide. It is currently on its way to Governor Granholm’s desk to be signed into law.

Here are some of the high (and low) lights of this historic legislation:
· The bill’s official title is “The Dr. Ron Davis Act of 2009”
· Under this legislation, ALL BARS AND RESTAURANTS will be non-smoking.
· The effective date is May 1, 2010
· The labor union exemption that was included in the original version of this bill has been stripped out!
· Tobacco specialty stores may be exempted provided they meet the following requirements:
o Their primary purpose must be the retail sale of tobacco products and smoking paraphernalia.
o Owners must prove that the store generated 75% or more of its total gross annual income from the on-site sale of tobacco products and smoking paraphernalia (meaning online sales DO NOT COUNT).
o This does NOT include any establishment with any type of liquor, food, or restaurant license. Translation: 95% of the hookah bars will have a choice – “Get rid of your food license or get rid of the hookah.”
· Cigar bars may be exempted provided they meet the following requirements:
o They must be in existence on May 1, 2010.
o Cigar bars MUST have an installed on-site humidor.
o Owners must file an affidavit proving that the cigar bar generated 10% or more of its total gross annual income from the on-site sale of cigars and the rental of on-site humidors.
o The smoking area must be physically separated and enclosed on all sides from any non-smoking areas.
o The cigar bar prohibits the smoking of all other tobacco products (no hookah, no pipes, no cigarettes, etc).
o The cigar bar allows only the smoking of cigars on the premises that retail for over $1.00 per cigar (none of those cigarettes masquerading as “little cigars”).
o You must purchase the cigar on the premises if you’d like to smoke in the cigar bar.
· Casinos are partially exempted
o Only the gaming floors of casinos are exempted.
o All bars and restaurants that are in or are part of a casino may not allow smoking.
· This bill passed 24-13 in the Senate and 75-30 in the House.

Although we would have preferred a comprehensive bill without exemptions, this is still a very well written bill and will protect a majority of Michigan’s workers from the dangers of secondhand smoke.

More importantly, this legislation passed because of YOUR EFFORTS. It was your tireless phone calls, visits to legislators, emails, and letters that kept the pressure up and ultimately got this passed. Enjoy this moment! We still have some work ahead of us, but are more than halfway there. We will be in touch in the near future with next steps.

Thank you, all of you, again. Now, go celebrate!

Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath: Great American Smoke Out!

Tomorrow, November 19th is the American Cancer Society's 34th Great American Smokeout. You can celebrate by calling on lawmakers to get the smoke out of Michigan with the passage of a comprehensive smokefree law.

It's time to Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath!

Email your Senator and Representative to tell them you want a comprehensive smokefree bill passed NOW.

Or give them a call directly. Call 888-NOW-I-CAN to be transferred directly to your lawmaker's office.

The Great American Smokeout began more than 30 years ago as a platform to encourage smokers to quit. Since then, the platform has expanded to not only encourage smokers to make a plan to quit, but also to encourage all Americans to advocate for comprehensive smokefree laws that help protect workers and patrons from exposure to secondhand smoke.

Today, more than 70 percent of the United States population is covered by 100 percent smokefree workplace laws, despite aggressive efforts by tobacco companies to defeat such laws. Please take action today.

Week 4: The Writing is on the Wall

ACT NOW! OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR BREATH

The "Writing is on the Wall" for our state legislators. It's time for Michigan to be smokefree!

This week, we're using Facebook to get our message across. Did you know many Michigan legislators have their own Facebook pages?

We need you to take action by posting a positive message on your lawmaker's wall or sending it directly to them via private message. When communicating with your lawmaker please be respectful but most importantly, let them know you want a comprehensive smokefree bill passed today! http://www.facebook.com/

Not a Facebook user? You can still take action by calling your legislators!

Tobacco Free Michigan has its own Facebook page. Become a "fan" here: www.facebook.com/tobaccofreemi

Here is what you can do in addition to posting on your legislator's page:

• Make sure all of your Facebook friends know about our page and encourage them to become a fan.



• Find your legislator and get "connected" with him or her today. If you don't know who your legislator is, go here: http://www.house.mi.gov/find_a_rep.asp or here: http://www.senate.mi.gov/



• Share our Facebook messages and alerts with your friends and post them in your news feed



• Visit the Campaign for Smokefree Air page, save the logo, and make it your profile picture for the week

As always, we want to hear from you. Once you've taken action, leave a comment on the Act Now! blog at http://campaignforsmokefreeair.wordpress.com/

WEEK 3: ACT NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR BREATH

It’s pretty scary…

In the year since our lawmakers failed to pass a comprehensive smokefree bill, another 16,000 of our Michigan kids became regular, daily smokers. Don’t let our lawmakers fall for tobacco industry “tricks.” The Legislature can give our kids a real “treat” this year by passing a comprehensive smokefree bill.

IT’S TIME TO ACT NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR BREATH!

This week, we want you to CALL your Senators and Representatives and tell them you want a comprehensive smokefree law NOW!

Teens who work in smokefree worksites are 25% less likely to smoke than those who work in places without smoking restrictions.

We want to hear from you. Once you've taken action visit our "Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath" Campaign blog and leave a comment telling us what you've done!

Let’s have our kids collecting candy instead of cancer this year…

ACTION ALERT: ACT NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR BREATH

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Take a look at this picture:

Something is not right. Michigan is one of the “unlucky 13” states that still does not protect its residents from the dangers of secondhand smoke. Please email your legislators TODAY and tell them it’s time to pass a comprehensive smokefree bill.

Despite the ongoing budget battle, last week the Senate took action to pass the legislation allowing you to hang items from your review mirror. The vote prompted Sen. Tupac Hunter, D-Detroit, to lament that the Senate spent time on "the fuzzy dice bill" when it could have devoted time to more substantial issues -- such as a comprehensive smokefree workplace law. We could not agree more!

Take Action Now or Forever Hold Your Breath!

Email your elected officials and tell them to stop "rolling the dice" with workers' health. Ask that they make the smokefree legislation the top priority instead of wasting time on frivolous legislation like "the fuzzy dice bill". We want to leave the other “dirty dozen” behind and pass a comprehensive smokefree bill today.

We want to hear from you. Once you’ve taken action visit our blog at http://campaignforsmokefreeair.wordpress.com/aignforsmokefreeair.wordpress.com/

Which issue do you think is more important to Michigan's residents?

ACTION ALERT: Save Tobacco Prevention and Cessation for Our State!

URGENT – URGENT – URGENT- URGENT

We need you to CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES to save tobacco prevention programs in our state. These programs keep kids from smoking and help people quit!

According to subscription only MIRS news, Andy Dillon has just proposed an increase in the Other Tobacco Products tax. This tax would generate $41 million in revenue for the state. Unfortunately, the revenue would not be used for tobacco prevention and cessation.

We need to contact Speaker Dillon, Governor, and Representatives and tell them to support these tobacco tax increases and use the money to restore the Healthy Michigan Fund tobacco prevention and cessation program. Our legislators need to hear from the public that people support tobacco taxes and the tobacco prevention program!

WHAT: Contact your Representative, as well as Speaker Dillon and Governor’s Office.

HOW: To find the contact information for your Senator and Representative visit the following links:
-House: http://www.house.mi.gov/find_a_rep.asp

Contact information for the Governor’s office: 517-373-3400
House Speaker Dillon 517-373-0857 andydillon@house.mi.gov

Pass this alert along to your networks and encourage them to take action.

WHEN: Immediately! There is no time to waste. Make these calls as soon as possible. Encourage people to keep calling until a final budget deal is in place.

MESSAGE:

1. Increase tobacco taxes and fund and restore the tobacco prevention and cessation program!

2. The Healthy Michigan Fund and the Tobacco Prevention Program are essential to the health and economy of our state.

3. Michigan ranks 46th among all states in funding for tobacco prevention and cessation.

4. You cannot solve the problem of chronic disease by eliminating prevention funding in favor of Medicaid.

TAKE ACTION TODAY!