Proposal 18 was passed by the Indianapolis City-County Council on Monday night and is awaiting Mayor Ballard’s signature! Unfortunately, it will not be implemented prior to the Super Bowl this weekend. So until all of Indy’s bars and taverns are smoke-free, we have created two bar guides to help residents and visitors find smoke free Indy bars and clubs. A downtown guide will be printed and distributed to downtown hotels and is available here and a guide for  those of you who will be visiting other areas of the city can be found here.  Please thank these smoke free bars for protecting the health of their patrons and workers!

Don’t see your favorite smoke free bar on these guides? Email info@smokefreeindy.com and we will be sure to add them!

Voice youth will be in downtown Indy during the Indy 500 Parade educating local youth and the community about Indianapolis serving as a test market for big tobacco.  Currently Camel is test marketing its new dissolvable tobacco products Orbs, Sticks and Strips in Indianapolis.  To learn more about these products and there impact on Indy seek out a Voice youth at the parade.

Smoke Free Indy supports the proposed Indianapolis smoke free air ordinance by the Indianapolis-Marion County City-County Council.

Smoke Free Indy Position Statement 

NEWS RELEASE 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:Monday, May 4th, 2009 

Contacts:Tim Filler                                                              Kristiane Silva                                                    317.652.6483                                                      317.962.2207      tim@timfiller.com                                           ksilva@clarian.org 

FRANKLIN ADOPTS EXPANSION OF SMOKEFREE LAW TO INCLUDE BARS and CLUBS.  IS INDIANAPOLIS NEXT?  

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Members of the City Council in Franklin, Indiana voted 6 to 1 tonight to expand Franklin’s smokefree workplace law to cover all workplaces, including bars and membership clubs.  Franklin previously had an ordinance that protected some workers in their workplace, but did not protect others, depending on the type of workplace.   

Now every worker in Franklin—even those who work in bars and clubs—will enjoy the same protection from the serious negative health consequences attributable to secondhand smoke.   

By enacting the ordinance adopted tonight, Franklin joins the growing number of municipalities in Indiana and nationwide to adopt comprehensive smokefree workplace ordinances that protect workers, including those who work in bars, clubs and restaurants, among other workplaces.  The new expanded ordinance is scheduled to take effect in 30 days. 

Smoke Free Indy congratulates the Franklin City Council and Franklin Mayor Fred Paris for taking this important step to protect the health of all workers in Franklin.  This action in Franklin hopefully will serve as a call to action to other policymakers, particularly here in Indianapolis, to protect all workers from on-the-job exposure to secondhand smoke.  Workers here in Indianapolis, just like in Franklin, shouldn’t have to choose between their health or their paychecks, and everyone deserves the same protection under the law.

An economic impact study commissioned by the City of Houston was released last week (January 2009) that shows there was no negative impact to Houston bars due to the comprehensive smoke free workplace law that was recently implemented. The Houston law covers bars, restaurants and other enclosed workplaces. Below is a news story that ran on KHOU TV.

http://www.khou.com/news/local/stories/khou090225_mp_smoking-ban-study.2cba93e.html?npc