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http://www.stltoday.com/suburban-jo...cle_39ba0519-84fe-5593-9c46-639cb7336864.html
While debate raged about a bill to let St. Charles County voters decide on banning smoking in most indoor businesses, Jim Pepper lit his electronic cigarette in the County Council chambers.
Pepper, who opposes any rule that would prohibit businesses from allowing smoking, exhaled after taking a draw off the e-cigarette and a cloud of water vapor quickly dissipated. He repeatedly smoked the e-cigarette during the council's Aug. 13 meeting even after a smoking-ban advocate complained to a sheriff's deputy.
By Friday, county officials were looking into whether e-cigarettes violate an existing ordinance prohibiting smoking in all county buildings.
"Originally we thought it was water based and it wasn't a problem," county spokesman John Sonderegger said Friday. "We don't have a position yet, but right now we're researching it and a decision will be made whether or not it's allowed."
Smokers of e-cigarettes inhale vapors designed to give the sensation of smoking tobacco without the odor when exhaled. The concentrated nicotine is available in several flavors, and there are some non-nicotine products as well.
Pepper, an O'Fallon city councilman, said he started using e-cigarettes to cut down on smoking tobacco. In two months, he said, he was down to half a carton of cigarettes a week from previously smoking a carton and a half a week. The Liberty Flight e-cigarettes Pepper smokes cost him $15 to $20 per month for the liquid nicotine re-fills.
"Is it a legal product?" said Pepper, who smokes e-cigarettes during O'Fallon council meetings. "Is it harming anyone else? Can it be compared to actual smoke? These are the kinds of questions that you ask. It can't be compared to regular smoke. It doesn't contain any of the carcinogens that they're talking about."
A bill introduced by Councilman Joe Cronin, R-District 1, would place a county charter amendment on the Nov. 6 ballot to prohibit smoking in most indoor places, including bars and restaurants. The amendment includes exemptions for casinos, private residences, private clubs with no employees and retail tobacco stores. The council could vote on the bill Aug. 27.
This is Cronin's third attempt to put a countywide smoking ban on the ballot. His original bill was approved by a 4-2 council vote in May 2011 but stalled when vetoed by County Executive Steve Ehlmann. Cronin's second attempt failed on a 3-3 council vote last November.
"We're not making the law and saying, 'OK, folks, you can't smoke in public places,'" Cronin said. "We're saying to the voters of this county, 'OK, folks, you get to make the decision.'"
Cronin's bill is different from the smoking ban proposed by the Committee for Economic Liberty, a political action committee led by former state Rep. Carl Bearden. The committee on Aug. 8 submitted petitions containing 22,856 signatures to place a charter amendment on the Nov. 6 ballot. The committee's proposal also includes exemptions for Ameristar Casino in St. Charles and some other businesses.
Councilman Jerry Daugherty, D-District 6, said he is against any proposal that takes rights away from small business owners. "Our small business owners built this country and our veterans defended it. And I'm not going to vote against either one of them," Daugherty said.
"I've been opposed to this smoking ban all along," said Councilman Joe Brazil, R-District 2. "The casino could have come to a council member and proposed that ordinance instead of paying a lobbyist $100,000 to get it wrong. It's almost like they're trying to buy the election."
Ameristar has donated $100,000 to Bearden's committee.
While debate raged about a bill to let St. Charles County voters decide on banning smoking in most indoor businesses, Jim Pepper lit his electronic cigarette in the County Council chambers.
Pepper, who opposes any rule that would prohibit businesses from allowing smoking, exhaled after taking a draw off the e-cigarette and a cloud of water vapor quickly dissipated. He repeatedly smoked the e-cigarette during the council's Aug. 13 meeting even after a smoking-ban advocate complained to a sheriff's deputy.
By Friday, county officials were looking into whether e-cigarettes violate an existing ordinance prohibiting smoking in all county buildings.
"Originally we thought it was water based and it wasn't a problem," county spokesman John Sonderegger said Friday. "We don't have a position yet, but right now we're researching it and a decision will be made whether or not it's allowed."
Smokers of e-cigarettes inhale vapors designed to give the sensation of smoking tobacco without the odor when exhaled. The concentrated nicotine is available in several flavors, and there are some non-nicotine products as well.
Pepper, an O'Fallon city councilman, said he started using e-cigarettes to cut down on smoking tobacco. In two months, he said, he was down to half a carton of cigarettes a week from previously smoking a carton and a half a week. The Liberty Flight e-cigarettes Pepper smokes cost him $15 to $20 per month for the liquid nicotine re-fills.
"Is it a legal product?" said Pepper, who smokes e-cigarettes during O'Fallon council meetings. "Is it harming anyone else? Can it be compared to actual smoke? These are the kinds of questions that you ask. It can't be compared to regular smoke. It doesn't contain any of the carcinogens that they're talking about."
A bill introduced by Councilman Joe Cronin, R-District 1, would place a county charter amendment on the Nov. 6 ballot to prohibit smoking in most indoor places, including bars and restaurants. The amendment includes exemptions for casinos, private residences, private clubs with no employees and retail tobacco stores. The council could vote on the bill Aug. 27.
This is Cronin's third attempt to put a countywide smoking ban on the ballot. His original bill was approved by a 4-2 council vote in May 2011 but stalled when vetoed by County Executive Steve Ehlmann. Cronin's second attempt failed on a 3-3 council vote last November.
"We're not making the law and saying, 'OK, folks, you can't smoke in public places,'" Cronin said. "We're saying to the voters of this county, 'OK, folks, you get to make the decision.'"
Cronin's bill is different from the smoking ban proposed by the Committee for Economic Liberty, a political action committee led by former state Rep. Carl Bearden. The committee on Aug. 8 submitted petitions containing 22,856 signatures to place a charter amendment on the Nov. 6 ballot. The committee's proposal also includes exemptions for Ameristar Casino in St. Charles and some other businesses.
Councilman Jerry Daugherty, D-District 6, said he is against any proposal that takes rights away from small business owners. "Our small business owners built this country and our veterans defended it. And I'm not going to vote against either one of them," Daugherty said.
"I've been opposed to this smoking ban all along," said Councilman Joe Brazil, R-District 2. "The casino could have come to a council member and proposed that ordinance instead of paying a lobbyist $100,000 to get it wrong. It's almost like they're trying to buy the election."
Ameristar has donated $100,000 to Bearden's committee.
