Columbia set for first smoking ban lawsuit
COLUMBIA — City Council members are set to consider filing suit against a Columbia tobacco store Wednesday, in what would be the first attempt to enforce the city’s smoking ban in effect since October 2008.
At issue is a dispute between the city and The Tobacco Merchant on Bower Parkway. Columbia’s ban prohibits smoking in all workplaces, including bars and restaurants, but it exempts stores that mainly sell tobacco products.
The Tobacco Merchant has been open in Harbison since 1997 selling mainly cigars, pipes and other tobacco items. In early 2009 the store added a bar after the city approved its license request to also sell beer. City officials now say that addition categorizes the store as a bar, and makes smoking illegal, regardless of the fact that the majority of sales are still tobacco related.
The text of Columbia’s smoking ban exempts retail tobacco stores if they don’t sell food, don’t allow customers under age 18, and other products they sell are “merely incidental.” The ordinance does not define what incidental sales mean.
Violations of the smoking ban are not considered criminal, but violators are subject to a $25 civil fine. If councilmembers approve filing suit, that lawsuit would request a judge issue an injunction forcing The Tobacco Merchant to not allow smoking on its premises.
So what do you think about the proposed lawsuit? Vote in today’s WACH FOX News Question of the Day on the main page of our website and let us know whether you think banning smoking in a store that sells tobacco goes too far, or if you think it is necessary for public health.
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By Bryan Cox
January 05, 2010
