Wednesday, February 13 2008
By URIAH A. KISER
Stafford County Sun online
STAFFORD - In a unanimous vote last week members of the Virginia House of Delegates sided with the restaurant industry, killing legislation that would have banned smoking in restaurants and nearly all other public areas throughout the commonwealth.
Gov. Timothy Kaine, D - Va. and the Virginia Department of Health strongly supported the measure, estimating that second hand smoke is to blame for more than 1,700 deaths per year. The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids spends as much as $124 per year in health care costs related to second hand smoke, according to a press release from the Governor's office.
"I think the decision should be lest up to the owner as to whether or not people can smoke in restaurants," said Paddy Browsman, owner of Paddy's Steakhouse and Pub. "We have people that come in and don't like the smoke and leave."
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