A historic statewide smoking ban in restaurants and bars is two months away from taking hold.
To help educate consumers and businesses about the law, which goes into effect Jan. 2, the state has launched a Web site -- www.SmokeFree.NC.gov. The law also affects hotels, motels and inns that serve food and drinks.
Gov. Bev Perdue said that the goal of the Web site is providing information on the law, as well as on secondhand smoke and how to quit smoking.
"By banning smoking in our restaurants and bars, we will greatly reduce the dangers of secondhand smoke and lower health-care costs for families," Perdue said.
About 24,000 establishments are covered by the law. Smoking is allowed in outdoor areas of bars and restaurants. Cigar bars, country clubs and fraternal organizations are exempt.
Local health directors, who are responsible for enforcing the law, are providing informational packets. People or businesses violating the ban receive a written warning for the first two violations and are fined on subsequent violations.
Opponents of the ban have argued that the law violates the rights of business owners. They said that the state should not criminalize the use of a legal product on private property.
Perdue has said that the smoking ban is a signal that North Carolina is serious about improving people's health.
She cited a study that showed that exposure to secondhand smoke costs state residents $289 million a year. The study was conducted by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina.
Melva Fager Okun, the senior health-program manager for N.C. Prevention Partners, said she believes that there is a "great need for information and outreach" to communities and businesses."
"Such laws also encourage all tobacco-using employees to quit. I am working with North Carolina hospital leaders to assure they are ready for this expected increased interest in quitting tobacco use."
Paul Shore, the president and chief executive of the N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association, said that some restaurants already have gone smoke-free because of the law, though he knows of none in the Triad. The association supported the ban once it became "comprehensive enough to create a level playing field," he said.
"There's still some confusion over what constitutes a club," Shore said. "Some people believe a private club is exempt when it's not. A cigar club must have 25 percent of its sales come from cigars, a tall order.
"Our concern is having a bar try to buck the system and permit smoking, taking away business from a nearby restaurant that is obeying the law."
When it comes to enforcement of the law, Shore said he believes that consumers will do the best job of policing the smoking ban. "There will be enough knowledge of the smoking ban that people likely will speak up if someone is smoking in an inappropriate place," Shore said.
John Ioannou, the co-owner of the Omega House restaurant in Winston-Salem, said he's not sure that the smoking ban will lead to more smokers quitting.
He also doesn't believe that his restaurant, known for decades for its embrace of smokers, will suffer financially. The restaurant sets aside its banquet room for nonsmokers.
"For the most part, my customers know what's coming," he said. "Some of them may be disgruntled about it, but they will adjust.
"I would think we will pick up more business from families and nonsmokers -- to balance out the initial loss of smoking customers. But I believe they will come back over time for the food and the camaraderie."
Ioannou said he is preparing the restaurant "a little at a time" for the switch, but acknowledges that he will be quite busy right before New Year's Day. "We'll be scrubbing the walls and ceilings down to remove the nicotine for those who are allergic to it," Ioannou said.
rcraver@wsjournal.com
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