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Eagle County, Colorado Passes Smokefree Workplace Law

By Joseph W. Cherner

Colorado voters pass smokefree workplace referendum

The referendum requires all workplaces, including restaurants and bars, to be smokefree. Surprisingly, it passed with 72% of voters in favor.

Parts excerpted from the Vail Daily, 11/1/05

EAGLE-VAIL, CO - Yesterday, voters in Eagle County (Colorado) voted overwhelmingly in favor of smokefree workplaces (referendum 1B). The referendum, which requires all workplaces (including restaurants and bars) to be smokefree, passed with 72% of voters in favor.

While some smokers were disappointed, others were understanding. "What I do to myself, I choose to do to myself, but I don't want to cause anybody else harm," smoker Tim Sapir said. "I work at a (smokefree) bar and I wouldn't want to be there everyday" if smoking were allowed.

Earlier Tuesday, Gore Range Brewery employees and customers sounded off on the referendum. Smoking at the bar and restaurant is prohibited during dinner hours. Smokers typically go outside, where heaters keep them warm, bartender Elizabeth Luciano said.

Aspen, Snowmass, Breckenridge, and other ski areas in Colorado are already smokefree.

To win smokefree air where you live, go to http://www.smokefree.net/alerts.php