Tobacco Documents Online

LOS ANGELES CITY' PUBLIC' SMOK'I'NiG ISSUE PUBLTC' OPINIOW. SURVEY • - SUMMARY OF FINDI'NGS' . . t, . .. . . The foilowi'ng,are highlights of a public opinion survey conducted April 12-16, 1984 by the independent public opinion research firm of Bregman and Associates and its presiden , Gene Bregman, and by Dr. Larry L. Berg, director of the Institute of' Politics and Government of the University of' Southern California. A total of 5'06 registered voters were randiomly selected fromiall 15 L.A. City Council districts in Los Angeles. * Less than one out of five (18t) registerid voters feel the Los Angeles City oumci'1 shoupaSs a law restricting or prohibiting smoking in local businesses. * Four out of five (80%) feel that the Los Angeles City Council shouMeilther not pass a law ('39t) or should simply urge businesses to establish policies based on employer and employee Aeeds (41%). . * Seven out of ten (72i) of, the nonsmokers and almost nine out of tenTM) of' the smokers id'entified in the survey said1 that problems between nonsmokers and smokers during the past three months have been rare or non-existent. * Seven out of ten (70;) feel businesses have already demonstrated, that t-fi-ey can hafildi'e problems in this area on a voluntary basis. * More than 3/4 (79'l') feel the establishment of separate! smoking and nonsmoking areas in restaurants should be left to each individual restaurant owner, base& on the restaurant's size and the needs and d'esires-of its customers. * Seven out of ten (73t) feel that either taxpayer's dollars should'' notFe-used (3813 or feel-authorities should not spend their time enforcing suc lavi5 (35t). 91 beli'eve the police and the courts should'aggressively enforce such a law and 114 feel employees should have •to sue in court to force their employers to: comply. * 2/3 (67i). feel a law regulating smoking in public places would' be unenforceable. 82t feel,civil lawsuits resulting from this law could further clog o!ur already overcrowded courts. : * Seven out of ten (73'1) believe there is already too much ~' government involvement in peogle!s lives and the same 73t' believe ~ government should not, regulate personal' behavior. ~ * Survey sample i'ncluded 651 Democrats and }25% R'epublicans, ~ comparedl to a City of Los Angeles voter regiistratilon of 63% GO Democratic and 271 R'epubli'can. "p . . ~P