toledoblade.com --

DUBLIN, Ohio - Gov. Bob Taft yesterday threw his support behind a strict ban on smoking in nearly all indoor public places and accused backers of a weaker ban of deceptively marketing it as the pro-economy alternative.

"It is really a deceptive proposal that would actually roll back progressive laws that have been enacted in a number of municipalities and prevent future action by local or state lawmakers to ban smoking in public places," the lame-duck governor said after speaking before a conference of local health commissioners.

"There's a lot of evidence in cities that have enacted comprehensive smoking bans that these retail establishments adapt and adjust and are doing OK," he said.

The Republican governor with record-low approval numbers continues to use ballot issues as a way to step back on Ohio's elections stage after his guilty pleas last year on misdemeanor ethics charges for accepting free golf outings and other gifts.

SmokeFreeOhio, the strict ban pushed by a coalition of health organizations led by the American Cancer Society, did not actively seek his endorsement. The governor's office contacted the organization Tuesday to offer his support. "It confirms that there is support across the whole political spectrum," SmokeFreeOhio spokesman Tracy Sabetta said. "The [U.S.] surgeon general's report [on second-hand smoke] that came out in June was really a call for public health officials to come out in support of smoke-free public places to protect all workers and all customers. There is no safe level of exposure."

Jacob Evans, spokesman for the alternative Smoke Less Ohio, said the coalition respects Mr. Taft but disagrees that bars and restaurants have done "OK'' in cities with smoking bans.

"When Toledo passed its ban, the evidence certainly indicated otherwise, and that's the reason voters changed what was initially passed up there," he claimed.

The governor has already campaigned against Ohio Learn and Earn, the slots-for-scholarships proposal just certified for the Nov. 7 ballot. He said he has not made a decision on whether to get involved in the third issue certified for the ballot, an increase in Ohio's minimum wage.

The weaker ban, dubbed Smoke Less Ohio, would exempt bars, restaurants with separate enclosed smoking areas, bingo halls, bowling alleys, and private clubs.

If voters approve both bans, Smoke Less, a proposed constitutional amendment, would override SmokeFreeOhio's initiated statute as well as bans enacted in Toledo, Bowling Green, Columbus, and 18 other cities.

Smoke Less is awaiting ballot certification. Meanwhile, SmokeFreeOhio's ballot spot is in peril because of a recent court ruling invalidating some of the petitions it filed.

Mr. Taft noted the involvement of R.J. Reynolds, maker of such cigarette brands as Camel and Salem, in Smoke Less Ohio.

"It's a tactic by tobacco companies to try to pre-empt local efforts to create indoor smoke-free environments that are healthy to Ohioans, especially those who don't smoke," he said.

Contact Jim Provance at:
jprovance@theblade.com
or 614-221-0496.

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