ASSEMBLY VOTES TO END SMOKING BAN.Byline: John Howard For other persons of the same name, see John Howard (disambiguation). John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian politician and the 25th Prime Minister of Australia. Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. Less than a month after smoking was outlawed in thousands of California bars and casinos, the Assembly late Wednesday narrowly approved lifting the ban. The measure was sent to the Senate on a 42-24 vote. It would repeal the prohibition against smoking starting next January, and calls for a suspension of two years or until federal authorities set up uniform national standards regulating bar smoking. The bill would allow smoking in about 35,000 bars, casinos and clubs where smoking was banned Jan. 1. Taverns on American Indian American Indian or Native American or Amerindian or indigenous American Any member of the various aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere, with the exception of the Eskimos (Inuit) and the Aleuts. reservations were not affected by the new law. Assemblyman as·sem·bly·man n. A man who is a member of a legislative assembly. assemblyman Noun pl -men a member of a legislative assembly Noun 1. Edward Vincent Edward Vincent was elected to the California State Senate in November, 2000, and represents the 25th Senatorial District which includes Compton, Gardena, Hawthorne, Inglewood, Lawndale, Lynwood, Los Angeles, Long Beach, San Pedro and the Palos Verdes Peninsula. , D-Inglewood, said his bill would protect jobs and allow people the freedom to smoke and drink without suffering criminal penalties. But critics said the health of employees and customers was being disregarded, and noted that most people oppose smoking. Critics also said the bill was crafted in such a way as to allow the suspension to continue for years, because federal regulations were still uncertain. But Vincent said the federal rules likely would be expedited and ``once this standard is adopted, clubs would be required to adhere to adhere to verb 1. follow, keep, maintain, respect, observe, be true, fulfil, obey, heed, keep to, abide by, be loyal, mind, be constant, be faithful 2. the standard . . . and people could not smoke.'' Assemblywoman Sheila Kuehl Sheila James Kuehl (born February 9, 1941 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is an American politician, and a former child actress. She is currently a Democratic member of the California State Senate, representing the highly urbanized 23rd district in Los Angeles County and parts of southern , D-Encino, said the Vincent bill represented a victory for tobacco interests and bar owners, who said the no-smoking law would cripple crip·ple n. One that is partially disabled or unable to use a limb or limbs. v. To cause to lose the use of a limb or limbs. their business. ``The tavern owners and bar owners - their entire testimony has nothing to do with the health of their employees, it has nothing to do with the health of their customers,'' Kuehl said. The future of Vincent's bill in the Senate was uncertain, but a floor vote in the upper house was not expected for weeks - if the bill survives several committees. California's first-in-the nation anti-smoking law went into effect Jan. 1, following years of debate in the Legislature. Vincent earlier had attempted to delay the ban, but his bill stalled during last year's legislative session. Exempt from California's new law are patios and other outdoor areas, bars and casinos on American Indian reservations and small mom-and-pop businesses. Enforcement of the law is left up to local agencies. Bar owners who allow smoking can be fined up to $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second violation with a year and up to $500 for any subsequent violation. Customers also face fines. |
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