Majority of restaurants doing fine with smoking ban

According a survey trumpeted and conducted by the less than honest Michigan Restaurant Association (MRA), 42.4 percent of its members say their business has decreased since the workplace smoking ban went into effect on May 1.

The MRA and the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association (MLBA) have in the past floated debunked studies to make a point, so I would take this with a grain of salt. But what has been missed is that a majority, 57.4 percent, have shown an increase in sales or no change in sales since the ban went into effect three months ago.

The survey found 14.8 percent reported an increase in sales since the ban went into effect while 43 percent of restaurant operators reported no change in sales since the ban was implemented. With only 20.4 percent of the Michigan population, it’s hard to impossible to see how they can have much of an effect on any business, other than the tobacco industry.

The real bonus is that the public and employees have been protected from deadly secondhand smoke and this has always been a public health issue. Even though the media buried the lead on this one, they have been doing an excellent job in reporting how poplar the ban is with 75 percent of Michigan residents supporting it and how well bars and restaurant are doing.

Emily Palsrok, spokeswoman for Campaign for Smokefree Air, summed it up nicely.

"Michigan residents have been overwhelming supportive and pleased with the new smoke-free air law,” she said. “We stand firmly behind our research and data that smoke-free air is good for business and good for our health."

Enforcing the smoking ban

Thousands of Michigan residents will breather easier tomorrow May 1 when the popular workplace smoking ban, known as the Dr. Ron Davis Smokefree Air Law, goes into effect.

The more than 12 year fight will come to and end at 6 a.m. Saturday when the law goes into effect, and it will be a day of celebration. Like any new law, there will be a few glitches, and despite some misunderstanding over enforcement, they have been ironed out.

The Campaign for Smokefree Air has put out simple and clear guidelines if the law is not being followed.

“It will take a couple of months for us to reach the compliance levels we would like because this is a big social change. We would like most issues to be dealt with inside the establishment by the owners or managers. Our goal is to help local health departments and not overwhelm them with complaints.”

If you see any people not complying with the smokefree law:

1. The first thing you can do is politely ask them to stop. In most cases, people will stop smoking because it is the law.

2. If they do not, you should tell an employee or manager at the establishment. They should take care of it.

3. If you see that the business is intentionally ignoring this issue, at that point, you should let them know that it is the law and you expect them to comply or you can contact the local health department.

4. As a last resort, contact the local health department and find out about their complaint process. Beginning Saturday, for information about filing a complaint visit the Michigan Department of Community Health enforcement web site.

Local health departments will be receiving many complaints in the first month so please try to work with the establishment to deal with the issue. Once you talk to a manager, the issue should be resolved and the health department will never have to be involved. This is the desired course of action.

Home of the Marlboro Man goes smokefree today: Michigan, not so much

LANSING -- Today is not only the first day of December, but it also marks the day that the smoking ban in the largest tobacco growing state in the nation goes into effect.

In Virginia, the home of the Marlboro Man and the largest cigarette factory in the world, you can no longer light up in a bar. The ban, approved in March, excludes private clubs and restaurants with separate rooms with independent ventilation systems, as well as open-air outside areas.

It makes the Michigan Legislature’s inaction even more disgraceful and disappointing, and we are one of only 13 backward states that does not have a workplace smoking ban.

Since the House approved House Bill 4377 last May with bipartisan support, there has been zero action on the bill, despite overwhelming support both in the Legislature and from the general public.

The Campaign for Smokefree Air launched the “Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath” grassroots campaign aimed at refocusing lawmakers’ attention back to protecting Michigan residents from the deadly impact of secondhand smoke in October, and it may be showing some results. The rumor in Lansing is that the bill may be taken up soon.

Contact your Legislator and urge them to both take up the bill and vote for it when legislative leaders actually allow an up or down vote.

Celebrate Great American Smokeout by urging lawmakers to take up the workplace smoking ban

Today is the American Cancer Society's 34th Annual Great American Smokeout, and all over the country people are giving themselves a break from the deadly habit of smoking, at least for a day.

You can further celebrate the Great American Smokeout by calling Michigan lawmakers and asking them to allow a vote on the workplace smoking ban. Michigan is one of the dirty 13 states that does not have a smoking ban in place to protect those of us who do not smoke against the effects of deadly secondhand smoke.

You can call or write your Senator or Representative directly, or you can 888-NOW-I-CAN to be transferred directly to your lawmaker's office. The toll free number is part of the Campaign for Smokefree Air’s “Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath” grassroots campaign launched last month aimed at refocusing lawmakers’ attention back to protecting Michigan residents from the deadly impact of secondhand smoke.

The House passed House Bill 4377 in May with bipartisan support, but the Republican controlled Senate refuses to take it up, despite some 70 percent of Michigan residents supporting it.

The Great American Smokeout traditionally takes place on the third Thursday in November. The concept dates from the early '70s when Lynn Smith, publisher of the Monticello Times of Minnesota, announced the first observance and called it "D Day." The idea caught on in state after state until in 1977, it went nationwide under the sponsorship of the American Cancer Society. If past Smokeouts are any indication, as many as one-third of the nation's 46 million smokers could be taking the day off from smoking.

‘Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath’ campaign launched

Now that the bulk of the budget bills are out of the way, it’s time for the Michigan Legislature to take action on the long overdue workplace smoking ban.

The Campaign for Smokefree Air has launched the “Act Now or Forever Hold Your Breath” grassroots campaign aimed at refocusing lawmakers’ attention back to protecting Michigan residents from the deadly impact of secondhand smoke. It’s a six week intensified grassroots effort to get lawmakers to finally pass a comprehensive smokefree bill.

People need to send an email to leadership, call your own representative, meet your senator at their coffee hour, or write on your lawmaker’s Facebook page. Part of the six week effort will be a new task and challenge each week, and the first task to call 888-NOW-I-CAN to be transferred to your State Representative’s office and tell them you want smokefree air now.

In May the House approved House Bill 4377 with bipartisan support that bans smoking in casinos and so-called cigar bars. The Senate says it favors a bill with no exceptions, but it has refused to act on any bill.

Indoor pollution levels in Detroit casinos are eight times higher than outdoor air

Air quality testing (AQT) conducted in Detroit’s three casinos revealed indoor pollution levels that are eight times higher than outdoor air, debunking the claim casino operators made back in March to the House Regulatory Reform Committee that their ventilation systems should earn them an exception to the workplace smoking ban.

The Campaign for Smokefree Air (CSA) sponsored the test that took place on Saturday, April 18, 2009 using Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) standards, established to effectively measure air quality for the protection of public health.. The tests measured the amount of tobacco smoke derived fine particle air pollution in each casino. Each location was measured over a 40-minute period. The fine particle indoor air pollution in the MGM, MotorCity and Greektown casinos was 92. The EPA considers air healthy to breath at levels of 15 and below.

“Results from the air quality assessments in each casino reinforce that casinos need to be included n smokefree legislation,” said Katherine Knoll, spokesperson for CSA and senior director of advocacy for the American Heart Association. “Casino workers deserve the same protection as any other employee. These workers are unfortunately exposed to high levels of air pollution on a daily basis in order to earn a paycheck.”

In 2005 and 2006, the air quality in the smoking sections of 90 bars and restaurants measured in eight Michigan cities averaged out to 147.75. The nonsmoking sections of restaurants in Detroit, Kalamazoo and Saginaw averaged out to 50.3, which is still more than three times higher than what the EPA considers healthy at 15.

In May, the House passed House Bill 4377 that would ban smoking in workplaces, including bars and restaurants, with the exception of casino floors and existing cigar bars. The bill was sent to the Senate for consideration, but Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop refuses to allow the Senate to consider the popular bill.

Two-thirds of Michigan voters favor a smoking ban in all workplaces

A recent poll by EPIC-MRA of Lansing shows that two-thirds of Michigan voters favor a smoking ban in all workplaces, including Detroit’s casinos.

The poll was commissioned by the Campaign for Smokefree Air, and it was conducted on March 19-22 by EPIC-MRA of Lansing. It polled 600 registered voters, and 66 percent favored a workplace smoking ban.

The results of the poll comes just days before the House Regulatory Reform Committee is expected to vote out a bill to the full House floor. Committee Chair Rep. Bert Johnson, D-Detroit, said he wants to report a bill out before the Legislature goes on its two-week Spring break, and Thursday is the last day before the break.

The workplace smoking ban passed both the House and Senate last session, but the differences in the two bills killed the ban. The House version exempted Detroit casinos and so-called “cigar bars.” The Senate passed a clean version with no exceptions.

The Regulatory Reform Committee will meet at noon Wednesday, April 1 in room 326 in the House Office Building at 124 N. Capitol in Lansing to report out a smoking ban bill. The hearing is open to the public.

Hoosier study reveals high levels of deadly seccondhand smoke in casinos

The Indiana Campaign for Smokefree Air and the Indiana Academy of Family Physicians recently released a Purdue University study revealing the state's casino workers and customers are breathing air containing 14 times more secondhand smoke than normal.

The study assessed indoor air quality in 11 casinos in Indiana during unannounced and clandestine visits in April and May of 2008. This inaugural in-depth study of air quality in Indiana casinos reveled levels of find particle indoor air pollution that were significantly higher than the maximum recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Seven of the 11 casinos had nonsmoking areas, but these have little impact on reducing smoke exposure, said Neil Zimmerman, the Purdue professor who led the study.

"It's the same as trying to enforce a non-peeing area in a baby pool," Zimmerman said.

Indian, bordered by states to the west and east by states with a workplace smoking ban, is in the same situation as Michigan. The Indian legislature is reconsidering a smoke-free workplace law after a similar bill did not make it to the floor last year. Michigan got a ban approved by both the House and Senate last year, but the two bodies could not agree on where to have exceptions or not, and the bill died last month. Casinos were at the forefront of that disagreement.

The release of the report comes just after the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States (NCLGS), an organization comprised of state legislators from states with casinos or gaming venues, formally adopted a resolution encouraging and calling for state legislative action to make gaming venues smokefree.

"Without Smokfree laws, Indians' employees are forced to risk their health in order to receive a paycheck. Michigan is no different," said Judy Stewart, campaign manager for the Campaign for Smokefree Air (CSA). "We applaud the efforts of the NCLGS and encourage Michigan lawmakers to follow their lead and make passing smoke free legislation in Michigan a priority."

The Campaign for Smokefree Air is a grassroots coalition with more than 260 members, including leadership from the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Lung Association of Michigan, Michigan Health & Hospital Association, and Michigan State Medical Society, as well as other statewide groups that support making workplaces, including restaurants and bars, smokefree. For more information about the Campaign for Smokefree Air,

Twas the night before the workplace smoking ban was approved

LANSING -- Everyonr is familiar with the poem “Twas the night before Christmas” by Clement Clarke Moore, but Sen. Ray Basham, D-Taylor, read a new version during statements in Thursday’s Senate session.

This version was written by Dr. Ronald M. Davis of East Lansing, and it talks abut the pending workplace smoking ban. He wrote it last year, but it ran in Thursday’s edition of the Detroit Free Press. Unfortunately, Dr. Davis passed away last month of pancreatic cancer. He was the immediate past president of the American Medical Association and director of the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, as well as a dedicated advocate of the smoking ban.

He will not be around to see the measure passed, but Basham proposed naming the law after Dr. Davis when it passes the House and Senate.

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the House (of Representatives),
not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. House Bill 4163 had been through both chambers with great fanfare, and there was a great yell of triumph from the Campaign for Smokefree Air.

Children with asthma were wishing for the best, of visits to restaurants with clean air in their chests. And Mama in her apron could work for a living, without the worry of cancer the secondhand smoke was giving.

When out in the Capitol lobby, there arose such a clatter, the people all wondered just what was the matter? Ohio has done it, and Illinois, too, so many states were smoke free, why is it so hard for Michigan to do?

Then it became clear, there was smoke in the air, from opponents who warned lawmakers, “You’d better not dare.” “We have,” they said, “our own science for you;
just listen to us, so you’ll know what to do.”

But it wasn’t enough, and CSA found their excuses easy to snuff. In a flash, we showed them the truth: smoke free air is needed at every work site – from office, to factory, to bar and to booth.

The people of Michigan called out in the night, “please Mr. Lawmaker, please make it right!” We want what they have – in Arizona, Arkansas, California and Colorado.
Why can’t we be like Connecticut, Florida, Georgia and Idaho? From Louisiana to Maine, in Maryland, Minnesota, Montana why they’ve even bet on smoke free air out in Nevada! New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, the Dakotas – residents are protected and smoke free, just like the folks in Oregon, Rhode Island and Tennessee.
Out west in Utah, up north in Vermont, in rainy Washington and political D.C. - they’ve figured it out, so why, why, oh why can’t we?

So the lawmakers voted and did the right thing, they proved to constituents that they had been listening. But then I awoke with a terrible start; I grabbed for my pillow and clutched at my heart. For I had only been dreaming of a smoke free Michigan, and I know those who want it will have to try again and again. You see, even though the House and Senate have each voted, it’s still no cinch. The chamber can’t seem to agree on a final version, which is our own Christmas Grinch.

So write to your lawmakers and tell them to compromise and vote; tell them you’re watching and you’re taking note. It’s good for me and for you, good for health and business too; Be you naughty or nice, a smokefree Michigan is the right thing to do!

Smoking bans gets more ammo as another study says it will improve health

Although the Michigan House failed to take up the workplace smoking ban during its marathon Lame Duck session Thursday night that lasted until 11:30 p.m., proponents of the ban expect the House to take up House Bill 4163 when it reconvenes on Dec. 2 following its two-week deer-hunting break.

The push to ban smoking in workplaces, including bars and restaurants, failed to get the required number of votes to pass even though it got a majority of votes in September. The Senate approved a clean version that had no carve outs or exceptions back in May, but the House balked at requiring the ban for Detroit casinos.

However, a new study released on Nov. 11 may give presents even more ammunition in their quest for the ban. Henry Ford Health System’s director of Cardiac Imaging Research released a study that said if smoke free air were implemented in Michigan a 12 percent drop in heart attack admissions would be seen after just the first year.

Researchers examined the average number of heart attack hospital admissions in Michigan from 1999 to 2006 and concluded that smoke free air could lower admissions by up to 3,340 admissions annually. This study joins numerous other studies that demonstrate a smoking ban is directly responsible for a reduction in the number of acute coronary events.

“Clearly lives are at risk and the legislature needs to deal with this issue with a sense of urgency,” said Katherine Knoll, The Campaign for Smokefree Air (CSA) spokesperson. “Workers have dealt with the dangers of secondhand smoke long enough and these studies can no longer be ignored. The legislature needs to get the job done. It’s time to protect all workers whether you work in an office, factory, restaurant or bar.”

You can call or email the Speaker of the House Andy Dillon to urge him to allow a vote on the bill. He can be reached at (888) 737-3455 or andydillon@house.mi.gov. If the bill passed in the House is different than the Senate version, contact Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop to urge him to allow a concurrence vote. He can be reached at (517) 373-2417 or at senmbishop@senate.michigan.gov. Also, don't forget to contact your state Senator and Representative to urge a yes vote.

Hundreds rally for good health and indoor smoking ban

LANSING -- Hundreds of supporters of all ages crowded into the Capitol rotunda Tuesday to push the Michigan Legislature to pass House Bill 4163 that will ban smoking in all workplaces, including bars and restaurants.

“We have an obligation as legislators to protect the public health, and we are going to do that,” Sen. Ray Basham, D-Taylor, told the cheering crowd. “This is an issue I have been working on for more than 10 years.”

The House approved HB 4163 back in December and sent it to the Senate, but it contained exceptions or carves outs for casinos, tobacco retailers, bingo halls, horse racing tracks and so-called "cigar bars." After months of pressure, the Senate finally allowed a vote in May and approved an amendment introduced by Basham that had no carve outs and sent it back to the House for concurrence. A few weeks later, the House sent over a vehicle bill with the carve outs.

Basham said he has a commitment from Speaker of the House Andy Dillon to allow a vote on the clean bill, HB 4163.

“I would not be here and we would not be where we are now without the hard work of Judy Stewart and the Campaign for Smoke free Air,” Basham said.

The people at the rally lobbied state Representatives, and speculation is a vote will come before the end of September and before the Lame Duck session starts in November after the election.

“The merits of this proposal just screams out at you; it‘s not about if you can smoke, it’s about where you can smoke,” said Rep. Andy Meisner, D-Ferndale. “People around the state are literately holding their breath for us to make the change.”

Dr. Greg Holzman, Chief Medical Executive for the Michigan Department of Community Health, told the crowd secondhand smoke kills thousands of Michigan residents who do not smoke every single year.

“The scientific evidence is undisputable,” he said. “It’s no longer a scientific question, it’s a political issue.”

A pair of studies released earlier this year debunked opponents claim that a smoking ban will hurt the business of bars and restaurants.

“We have all heard it will hurt businesses,” Holzman said. “The good news is that we have been so slow in enacting a ban, we have lots of data from states that have gone smoke free. It has shown is does not hurt business and in most cases it improved it.”

Supporters of indoor smoking ban rally to get the ban done

LANSING -- Approval of the much anticipated indoor smoking ban, including bars and restaurants, could come as early as next week. Speaker of the House Andy Dillon, D-Redford, has indicated he will allow the full House to vote on House Bill 4163, sent over from the Senate in May.

Although there has been no action on the two bills banning smoking in the Legislature since the spring, groups like The Campaign for Smoke free Air and private citizens have been keeping the pressure on and the spotlight on the issue by writing and calling lawmakers.

In fact, the coalition has a rally planned in Lansing on Tuesday, September 16 to exert even more pressure on the House to take up HB 4163.

The rally will begin at 12:30 p.m. on the first floor rotunda of the Capitol, and among the speakers will be Sen. Ray Basham, who first sponsored the legislation banning smoking more than a decade ago. Although it is not required and everyone is welcome, they are asking people to RSVP at matt.phelan@cancer.org.

As many people are aware, the House first approved HB 4163 way back in December, and it excluded casinos, tobacco retailers, bingo halls, horse racing tracks and so-called "cigar bars" from the ban. The Senate approved the bill in May, but it was a clean bill that included no exceptions or carve outs.

However, when it was sent back to the House, many Detroit-area legislators balked, fearing the Detroit casinos would lose business and then lose jobs. They passed HB 5074 a few weeks later that had exceptions for non-Native American casinos, bingo-halls and so-called “cigar bars.”

Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, only permitted a vote on 4163 after extensive pressure from Michigan residents, and the bill only received support because it included a total ban, thereby leveling the playing field for all bars and restaurants. He will not allow a vote on HB 5074, and it appears unlikely he would allow a second vote on HB 4163 if it were returned to the Senate with amendments that included exceptions or carve outs.

There is some speculation that Detroit-area lawmakers may be more prone to vote for the clean bill now that the primary election is over. If HB 4163 is approved in the House, it will go to the governor for signature.

Smokefree proponents push to get ban in place before election break

LANSING – With just one week left in the Michigan legislative session before the summer break, proponents of the workplace smoking ban, including bars and restaurants, are making one last big push to get a clean smoking bill to the Governor.

The Campaign for Smokefree Air placed print ads in the state’s largest circulation newspapers urging lawmakers to pass a clean smoking bill that has no exceptions or so-called "carve outs." They are also urging members to contact their legislator, as well as House Speaker Andy Dillon, to urge them to act.

As you recall, the Senate passed House Bill 4163 in May that had no exceptions. But the House punted and passed a vehicle bill, HB 5074, that banned smoking in workplaces with exceptions, including non-Native American casinos, bingo-halls and so-called “cigar bars.” The House still has 4163 to act on, and supporters are asking the House act on that bill. The Senate has also not indicated if it will act on HB 5074.

The Senate was spurred into action in May after sitting on the bill for months by a report by the leading Lansing research firm Public Sector Consultants Inc. called “Smokefree workplaces: The Impact of House Bill 4163 on the Restaurant and Bar Industry in Michigan” that concluded there is no net economic impact on bars and restaurants.

The coalition is also saying the same thing for casinos. According to statistics provided by Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights, a year after Delaware implemented comprehensive smokefree legislation, state revenue from gaming increased by 3 percent to $5.7 million. According to the California Board of Equalization, California’s bars, casinos and gambling clubs continue to profit since going smoke free in 1998, and sales increased from $8.64 billon in 1997 to $11.3 billon in 2002. Since the Massachusetts smokefree law went into effect, net keno sales have increased $121,000 per year.

Casinos that are not smokefree have up to 50 times more cancer-causing particles in the air than highways and city streets jammed with diesel trucks in rush hour traffic. A recent study of 17,000 gamblers in Las Vegas found that four out of five gamblers do not smoke. No one can explain how one in five people can carry so much weight and have so much more money than the rest of us.

The decision to create the carve outs came out of fear that the three Detroit casinos will lose business to the Native Americans casinos that do not have to ban smoking. Again, no one has explained how such as small group – only 21 percent of the state’s population smokes – control so much money or why they have so much power. It also makes no sense that with gas costing more than $4 per gallon, why any sane person would drive 160 miles – the distance from the Detroit casino – to the nearest Native American casino just to smoke a cigarette. It is easier to drive to Windsor where casinos are smoke free, and many people do so, in spite of the congested Ambassador Bridge and the passport hassles.

To contact your state Representative, go to www.house.mi.gov to find your representative’s email, fax or mailing address, and a mass email to supporters are urging them to send the ad as an attachment. You can also call the American Cancer Society at 1-888-NOW-I-CAN today and ask to be transferred directly to your state Representative.

Michigan continues to lag in protecting resident’s health

LANSING – Iowa became the latest state to go smokefree, including bars and restaurants, according to a press release by the Campaign for Smokefree Air.

The grrassroots coalition, dedicated to making Michigan smokefree, said it applauded the Iowa Legislature and Governor Chet Culver for their leadership in ensuring smokefree workplaces with the Smokefree Air Act, signed on April 15. Iowa joins more than 30 other states that have gone smokefree, but Michigan has not done the same. House Bill 4163, that bans smoking in all Michigan workplaces, including bars and restaurants, remains bottled up in the Senate because of Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop.

“Michigan senators need to stop ignoring the growing support for smokefree air and pass comprehensive legislation here in Michigan,” said Katherine Knoll, spokesperson for CSA. “We would like our lawmakers to protect the health of their constituents by passing a strong version of HB 4163 without any exemptions. Every Michigan worker should be protected from secondhand smoke.”

The news from Iowa comes on the heels of a report by the leading Lansing research firm Public Sector Consultants Inc. called “Smokefree workplaces: The Impact of House Bill 4163 on the Restaurant and Bar Industry in Michigan” that summarized 43 other studies and six public health reports across North America that have examined the economic and health aspects of banning workplace smoking in some form. The report concluded that "the vast majority" concluded there is no net economic impact on bars and restaurants. It also included polls showing increasing public support for bans, with support even stronger after bans have been enacted.

Perhaps more significantly was one of the authors of the study, former Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema, a senior policy fellow at PSC. It was Sikkema who refused to give the smoking ban bill, pushed by Sen. Ray Basham, a hearing when he led the Senate before Bishop.

Last December, the Democratic-controlled House approved House Bill 4163 -- introduced by Rep. Brenda Clack, D-Flint -- by a vote of 56-46. When the bill was referred to the Republican-controlled Senate, a brief fight ensued as to what committee it would be sent to. Proponents of the bill wanted it to go to what many saw as the most logical place for it: the Health Policy Committee. The chairman of that committee, Sen. Tom George, is receptive to the ban. George is a medical doctor. Instead, it was sent to the Government Operations and Reform Committee, chaired by Bishop. Although the ban has lots of support from people from both parties, Bishop has said he will not only not allow the bill to be voted on; it will not get even get a hearing.

However, Bishop told an audience at a town hall meeting in February in Oakland Country, sponsored by the League of Women Voters featuring Bishop and Speaker of the House Andy Dillion, that he would give the bill a hearing before his committee. However, Bishop did not give a date for the hearing.

Pressure for action on popular smoking ban goes high tech

The Lansing-based Campaign for Smokefree Air (CSA) is taking its campaign to ban smoking in Michigan workplaces high-tech with a video contest to urge the Michigan Senate to act.

The Smokefree Video Challenge is looking for the most creative ways to tell the Michigan Senate why Michigan workplaces -- including restaurants and bars -- should be smoke free. CSA is challenging people to produce short, two-minute videos that will be placed on YouTube telling Michigan's senators why Michigan should become the next smoke-free state.

According to the group's Web site, CSA will review all submitted videos and will choose the top five. Then those videos will be placed on the CSA Web site, where people will vote for their favorite video. The winner will receive travel vouchers toward a trip to the smoke-free city, state or country of their choice, and with some 30 states and numerous countries already smoke free -- France is the latest to go smoke free -- they have a lot of destinations to choose from. The winning video may also be used in upcoming CSA advertising. The deadline for submissions is March 14.

In early December, the Democratic-controlled House approved House Bill 4163 -- introduced by Rep. Brenda Clack, D-Flint -- by a vote of 56-46. When the bill was referred to the Republican-controlled Senate, a brief fight ensued as to what committee it would be sent to. Proponents of the bill wanted it to go to what many saw as the most logical place for it: the Health Policy Committee. The chairman of that committee, Sen. Tom George, is receptive to the ban. George is a medical doctor.

Instead, it was sent to the Government Operations and Reform Committee, chaired by Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop. Although the ban has lots of support from people from both parties, Bishop has said he will not only not allow the bill to be voted on, it will not get even get a hearing.

That comes on the heels of a poll released on Jan. 23 by CSA that says an overwhelming majority of Republican voters support legislation to make Michigan workplaces smoke free.

The poll was conducted Jan. 9-12 by Lansing-based EPICA/MRA, which polled more than 500 self-identified Republican voters. The poll said 76 percent favored smoke-free legislation, including 62 percent who "strongly favor it." That number drops when you ask respondent if that includes bars and restaurants, but it's still a majority of voters at 67 percent.

"We're hoping Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop takes this information to heart," said Judy Stewart, the spokesperson for CSA, in a press release.