CHICAGO TRIBUNE BUSINESS EDITORIAL

Letter to the Editor from Illinois Restaurant Association board member,
Joseph Terrell of Mokena.
Smoking Ban Opposition
Published October 17, 2005

Why is it that many think that attacking restaurateurs is the solution to the smoking situation?

Has anyone considered stopping the sale of cigarettes? Why not? Is it because like an addict they like the taste of the monies that are generated by the tax revenues?

Restaurateurs are among the most generous and caring folks around. Think about it. Ever give a charitable fundraiser in a muffler shop, or a steel mill. Why not? Because they are not part of the hospitality business.

Restaurateurs are! And they are the ones who have invested millions of dollars in their businesses and for many their restaurant is their life savings.

Now everyone wants to change the playing field by changing Chicago to nonsmoking in restaurants.

Consider one charitable organization is proud to report that sales in restaurants in New York went up the year after the smoking ban went into effect in 2002. Does anyone know of anything else that happened in New York in 2001 that might have had an impact on those numbers?

September 11, 2001?

Consider restaurants in Madison Wisconsin went smokeless and now sales are down 20 to 30% while the smaller surrounding communities are up double digits.

Consider the restaurateur in Mesa, Arizona that went smokeless, across the street was another city, his sales declined from $38,000 per week to $24,000 (down 35%) per week and still he is not back to his pre-ban levels.

Consider the smoking debate has gotten a very fine 503(c) Charity risking it all on lobbying, which is prohibited by their 503(c) exemption. Those funds were supposed to go into cancer research.o have to show some flexibility if they want to succeed. They're not there yet.

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