Jump to content

Virginia Smoking Ban Passes State Senate


Recommended Posts

News Article

One of the strongest tobacco states, Virginia, has finally passed a smoking ban that they have been trying to enact for years. From what I can tell, there is no exception for hookah bars - only "tobacco stores." If food is served, then there is no smoking allowed. It is a sad day for individual rights.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

wow
sounds like whats happening in Pa.
it started in allegheny county(pittsburgh) with big ban, including no smoking within either 5 or 15 ft of an entrance to a building(cant remember). It was shut down because Reynolds was footin the bill for bar owners' lawyers. Five city councilmen took the bill to pa senate, it went through with them and is now sitting in the house of reps...
its inevitable. and it sucks.
They should just up the regulations. I.E. if a restaurant wants smoking, they have to have the smoking section glassed off and Uber ventilation through out the building.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

not necessarily rivethead. in va if you serve alchohol you must also serve food. va has some wierd regulation about how you have to make a certain percentage of food sales every month and alcohol cannot be the only product you sell.
im surprised philip morris didnt fight this harder considering that they pretty much run the state.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

it might be like Pa's law. In order for a bar to have their Sunday liquor license, they have to have over 1/5 of their sales in food. This was also a case with the smoking ban. If a bar wanting to keep smoking, the had to have less than 1/5 of their sales in food

edit(post #350 w00t!) Edited by r1v3th3ad
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (thecoalition @ Feb 6 2008, 02:55 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
not necessarily rivethead. in va if you serve alchohol you must also serve food. va has some wierd regulation about how you have to make a certain percentage of food sales every month and alcohol cannot be the only product you sell.
im surprised philip morris didnt fight this harder considering that they pretty much run the state.


This. In order for hookah bars to survive, they would have to become solely places to smoke hookah. Many of the hookah bars I frequent in the Northern Virginia area, however, are mostly restaurants that serve hookah in addition to an extensive menu. Im surprised that given the ethnic makeup of this area (many people from the middle east) there has not been more about this.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, nbow is the time to get politically active folks. Your generation hold the political clout. There are a lot of you and you will be voting for many years to come. Organize. Get together and contact your state representitives. Be calm, reasonable, and say you will come together to remove anyone who continues to erode your individual rights. Just sitting around bitching, pissing, and moaning while your elected officials do things you don't like doesn't help and ytou have only yourseves to blame. you don't like it, get together and throw the suckers out. Remember, YOU are the future..no shit guys. cool.gif
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Smoke-Free Arizona Act passed May of last year... I was worried about all the hookah lounges, but somehow they are exempt from the smoke ban. I thought I wasn't going to like the smoke ban at first, but I do have to say it's quite nice going to bars and brew pubs and not smelling like an ashtray afterwards.

I'm not sure how hookah bars in Arizona are exempt from the smoke ban, but I'm so glad they are!!!!!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (ZenSilk @ Feb 6 2008, 12:01 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Wait, so can they serve Soex...? It's not tobacco.



I don't think I would ever go to a hookah bar that served Soex... That would just be nasty.

Back on topic, we should arrange some sort of hookah smoke off in Washington DC to gain public attention and be sure to advertise that we in no way condone using NHT in our hookahs.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (MrMoodz @ Feb 6 2008, 11:44 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
The Smoke-Free Arizona Act passed May of last year... I was worried about all the hookah lounges, but somehow they are exempt from the smoke ban. I thought I wasn't going to like the smoke ban at first, but I do have to say it's quite nice going to bars and brew pubs and not smelling like an ashtray afterwards.

I'm not sure how hookah bars in Arizona are exempt from the smoke ban, but I'm so glad they are!!!!!


In NYC the hookah bars gained exemption from the rules on "cultural" grounds. May be the same with AZ. VA hookah bars and such should mobilize NOW before the law is actually passed and it's harder to change.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I live in VA and have yet to hear of this, well I don't watch the news or anything. It's good thing I smoke at home. I would smoke at a couple downtown places but they are out of the way and rather noisy...I like the more traditional places. Would be a mighty shame if they went under though sad.gif.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

As much as we want individual rights, the majority will always vote in higher numbers than we ever will. The majority doesnt smoke anymore. The majority wants people to stop smoking period, either by will or by force. The more they chip away at it, the more bans there will be, the less people will want to deal with the hassle of smoking. Hookah smokers in America are a TINY TINY minority right now. Most of them smoke recreationally at a hookah bar or lounge with their friends, dont own their own hookah, and are college students in their early late teens and early 20s. While it would be good if we could all come together and rally our congresspeople, in each county with a major city, you might get 20 people to gather with you, maybe even less than that. If the majority doesnt agree with what you do, they wont allow you to do it. This is the sting that comes with the beauty of this country. Majority rules.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (hinrg @ Feb 6 2008, 12:12 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
...we should arrange some sort of hookah smoke off in Washington DC to gain public attention and be sure to advertise that we in no way condone using NHT in our hookahs.



YO, I AM SO IN ON IT IF WE CAN GET THAT TO HAPPEN!!!! and i'll bring lots of friends, too.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

There has been a public smoking ban in my city for almost 4 years now. It's not bad though because there are no Hookah bars here anyway.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

well theres a similar law in IL where you cant smoke within 15 feet of public places....BUT hookah bars are still open because smoking its there main source of income so they by-pass that law...here at least...you cant smoke in bars or in resturants but hookahs stores you still can
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (shoresidejake @ Feb 6 2008, 09:54 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
soex... wacko.gif


you know, folks. 2nd-hand smoke from SOEX is still "2nd-hand smoke." the law says nothing about TOBACCO smoking. it just says "smoking." i'm sure the herbal shisha smokers are safe for now, but just wait until they realize that it's the carbon monoxide in the 2nd-hand smoke and not just the nicotine.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

thats in texas too you can now only smoke in "bars" so for a restaurant to have smoking it must also be clasified as a bar too. hookah bars though are all good
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (Stinkyfisherman @ Feb 7 2008, 11:17 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
thats in texas too you can now only smoke in "bars" so for a restaurant to have smoking it must also be clasified as a bar too. hookah bars though are all good



Serious? So are IHOP's bars now, then? I went to an IHOP over the break, so less than a month ago, and we were able to smoke in there. I had never heard of this classification law.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE (ahwahoo2006 @ Feb 6 2008, 08:34 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
News Article

One of the strongest tobacco states, Virginia, has finally passed a smoking ban that they have been trying to enact for years. From what I can tell, there is no exception for hookah bars - only "tobacco stores." If food is served, then there is no smoking allowed. It is a sad day for individual rights.



Thats what Illinois has done if you serve food or alcohol then no smoking. The idiots here in town that own bars have this dream there will be a smoking permit they can buy.

They are dreaming. And none of the restaurants or bars that I know of are even enforcing the law they say screw it and smoke just buy a can of soda to use as ashtray.

Well I know I am legal I stay at my smoking lounge and eat at home and stay where I can smoke my house and my lounge.

Later and sorry to hear about this my virginia brother smokers my advice is do what I did start a hookah lounge that sells hookahs tobacco and cigars.

Bubba
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...