Published: August 29, 2008 12:38 am         

Fayette Board of Health amends smoking ban

OAK HILL — Following brief but passionate arguments from both sides of the issue, the Fayette County Board of Health voted 3-1 Thursday to amend the county’s enhanced smoking ban that is set to take effect Oct. 1. One board member was absent.

The amendment will allow bars, beer taverns, video lottery establishments, bowling alleys and fraternal organizations to permit indoor smoking under certain restrictions.

No one under 18 will be allowed inside an establishment unless it is certified as smoke-free. A ban on smoking will exist in a building any time a minor is inside. The U.S. Surgeon General’s warning on the harmful effects of smoking must be posted at the entrance of any smoking establishment.

Without making a decision Thursday, board members discussed the possibility of increasing protections at a future date for non-smoking employees and product suppliers from second-hand smoke.

“We’re just trying to run a business,” Jim Ayers said during the 30-minute period for public comment prior to Thursday’s vote at the Lewis Community Center. The board gave each side 15 minutes to present its case.

“It’s going to affect our living, and it’s going to affect us badly. It’s our right. Let us make our own decisions as adults,” Ayers added to raucous applause. An Oak Hill police officer was present at the meeting to make sure things didn’t get out of control.

Christina Mickey of Smoke-Free Initiative West Virginia, spoke of other counties that have enacted a ban similar to Fayette County’s. She claimed courts around the country have approved the legality of such bans. “You’re going up against social norms,” she said, adding that 80 percent of Fayette County residents do not smoke.

Patty Deutsch told of her brother, a 61-year-old non-smoker, who had a kidney removed due to his exposure to second-hand smoke while working in the hospitality industry. “Thank you for your strength,” she told board members.

“Clean air is important to everybody. Please stick to your guns,” Noni Roberts asked of the board.

— E-mail: mhill@register-herald.com