| Atlantic City, NJ— Support for closing the casino smoking loophole continues to grow as five New Jersey municipalities with significant casino worker populations have passed unanimous resolutions recently that call for state legislators to advance on popular, bipartisan legislation that would easily pass in Trenton.
Similar to the City of Atlantic City’s resolution passed in August 2021 in support of state legislation protecting casino workers from dangerous secondhand smoke, the local governments of Northfield, Egg Harbor Township, Upper Township, Egg Harbor City, and Somers Point have passed resolutions that state they “[join] with the effort underway in the NJ Legislature and [call] for the protection of all workers in the State of New Jersey from the hazards of secondhand smoke by requiring that casinos be smokefree workplaces.”
The full resolution states the following:
WHEREAS, in January, 2006, Acting Governor Codey signed the New Jersey Smoke Free Air Act (SFAA), protecting 99% of New Jersey workers from exposure to secondhand smoke while at work; and
WHEREAS, the SFAA does not protect more than 20,000 men and women employed at New Jersey casinos and the tens of millions of non-smoking visitors each year; and
WHEREAS, there is an effort underway in the NJ Legislature to amend the “New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act to eliminate the exemption that the casinos enjoy and bills in the NJ Assembly and Senate are sponsored by more than half of the members of each body; and
WHEREAS, these bills are based in part on studies conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health that conclude that casino workers are at a greater risk for lung and heart disease because of secondhand smoke; and
WHEREAS, the 2006 U.S. Surgeon General’s report on secondhand smoke declared that there is no safe level of exposure; and
WHEREAS, the City of Atlantic City enacted Ordinance 2006-86 limiting smoking to 25% of the casino gaming area, thus creating smoking areas that are 300+% smokier than before the ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the public and casino employees deserve the same protection from smoking and secondhand smoke as others in the State of New Jersey for more than 16 years.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that by this Resolution, the [Council], joins with the effort underway in the NJ Legislature and calls for the protection of all workers in the State of New Jersey from the hazards of secondhand smoke by requiring that casinos be smokefree workplaces.
Read the resolutions from each local government:
The resolutions passed by these municipalities add to the growing movement calling for smokefree casinos in New Jersey. This news comes as leaders of Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE) released a video outlining the state of casino workers’ health and called on lawmakers to pass bipartisan legislation by April 15.
BACKGROUND
In August 2021, city councilors in Atlantic City passed a resolution in support of state legislation to close the casino loophole that allows indoor smoking and thus exposes casino workers to dangerous secondhand smoke. As the Press of Atlantic City reported, “Council also passed resolutions at its Aug. 25 meeting in support of a bill to ban smoking in Atlantic City casinos…The smoking ban resolution was in support of Senate Bill 1878.” S1878/A4541 “eliminates smoking ban exemption for casinos and simulcasting facilities.”
Legislation to eliminate the casino smoking loophole has earned more cosponsors than most other bills this legislative session in Trenton. It has been over 550 days since smoking returned to Atlantic City casinos and legislation to get rid of smoking is now cosponsored by 51 state assembly members and 23 state senators– a bipartisan majority in both chambers.
S264 and A2151 are identical bills that “[e]liminates [the] smoking ban exemption for casinos and simulcasting facilities.”
Governor Phil Murphy has repeatedly affirmed that he’d sign the legislation, most recently saying, “At the end of the day, we will still get good business. Atlantic City is an American gem. We’ve got the ocean and the other competitors don’t. And this is the right thing for our respective health.”
A report by Las Vegas-based C3 Gaming found that casinos without indoor smoking outperform their smoking counterparts and that Atlantic City would not lose gamblers to the handful of remaining eastern Pennsylvania casinos that allow indoor smoking. The United Auto Workers (UAW), the union representing Atlantic City casino dealers, is urging legislative leaders to advance bills to close the smoking loophole. UFCW Local 152, which represents 16,000 retail, manufacturing, and healthcare workers in South Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, and Delaware, also supports eliminating the casino smoking loophole.
The leading organization dealing with gambling addiction has warned legislators that continuing to allow indoor smoking at Atlantic City casinos will only continue to encourage gambling addiction, but that passing bipartisan bills, S264 and A2151, to close the casino smoking loophole would help to address this concern.
### |
