TALLADEGA —City Councilman Donnie Miller took exception to a remark city manager Sue Horn made in Thursday’s Daily Home regarding compromise on the city’s recently implemented smoking ban. Specifically, Horn said, “Councilmen Miller and (Eddie) Tucker were supposed to bring a compromise proposal back to the council, and if they have done that, I haven’t seen it.”
Miller said he did present the council with a written suggestion allowing restaurants to opt in or out of the ban. Several locally owned restaurants, mostly with bars, said the ban has devastated their businesses. Smoking patrons have started going to restaurants in the county, where the ordinance is not in effect.
“They are either a smoking facility or a non-smoking facility,” according to Miller’s proposal. “Whichever they choose, they must have a sign posted at all openings for the public to see. This sign should be at least 18 (inches square) and readable for patrons to see from a distance. They may not disclose that they have non-smoking and smoking rooms unless they have a separate (with heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system installed.”
Miller’s proposal also includes a brief survey of smoking laws in other states.
“Thirty-one states have some sort of no-smoking laws,” he wrote. “Twenty-four of the 31 states ban smoking in restaurants with bars, 19 of 31 ban smoking in all bars, 23 of 31 states ban smoking in casinos and 10 of the 31 states do not ban smoking in work places that employ five or fewer employees. Seven states have rejected the smoking ban.”
The “question has to be, why hasn’t the state of Alabama passed a law?” Miller wrote.
“The restaurants in question say if the county or state passes a law on smoking where everyone would be equal, then they do not have a problem with the ordinance.”
Miller said statewide legislation has been brought up on at least four occasions, but has never really gotten close to becoming law. Talladega, like most counties in Alabama, lacks the authority to pass any permanent ordinances.
“Please understand that as an individual I agree with the ban,” Miller said, “but as a business owner and city councilman, I believe it’s unconstitutional to tell someone how to run their business.”
At Monday’s meeting, Miller and Councilman Dr. Jimmy Davis were in favor of amending the ban to protect locally owned restaurants, while Tucker was opposed. Councilman Dr. Lance Grissett and Council President Dr. Horace Patterson remained open to the possibility of amending the ordinance, but said they were not prepared to vote in favor of it Monday.
