Iowa health officials tout smoke-free law

DES MOINES – State public health officials are declaring Iowa's year-old anti-smoking law a flaming success.

Tom Newton, director of the state Department of Public Health, said Tuesday about 1 percent of the more than 82,000 businesses that are subject to the state's Smokefree Air Act received a notice of potential violation since the law took effect on July 1, 2008.

“I am happy to say that our enforcement efforts have been very effective during this first year of the Iowa Smokefree Air Act,” Newton said in a statement.

Over the past year, notices of potential violation have been sent to 1,015 businesses with employees, according to the department. Notices are generated following a valid complaint from the public or inspector visit.

“The notice of potential violation is primarily a tool for educating employers about what they need to do to come into compliance with the law. Of businesses who receive a first notice, 79 percent do not receive a second notice,” Newton said.

 Preliminary numbers indicate the top four business types for which a first notice of potential violation has been issued are: bars and restaurants (53 percent); retail stores and service-based businesses (20 percent); private and member clubs (3 percent); government (3 percent); hotels and motels (2 percent), according to agency records. The remaining 19 percent of employers who have received a violation notice represent a wide variety of Iowa businesses.

“The high level of compliance with the Smokefree Air Act means that we as a state are well on our way to achieving that goal. In addition, it demonstrates that the vast majority of employers in Iowa are abiding by this law, helping us create a brighter, healthier future for our state,” said Gov. Chet Culver.

Bill Roach of the Iowa Attorney General's Office said his agency has brought 50 enforcement actions against bar owners who did not comply with the anti-smoking law. Of those, 24 complaints were resolved with settlements generally including a seven-day liquor license suspension and a $1,000 fine, while another 26 cases are pending.

A group of bar owners tried unsuccessfully to challenge the constitutionality of the state anti-smoking law, but a Polk County district judge dismissed the lawsuit on May 12.

 The state law applies to employees in more than 99 percent of Iowa's businesses, making it one of the most comprehensive in the nation. Exceptions were made for the gambling floors within state-licensed casinos, the Iowa State Fairgrounds and the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown.

 For more information about the law or to report a violation, visit www.iowasmokefreeair.gov.