Tobacco Documents Online

S ETS & the EPA Report • In its 1993 report on ETS, the Environmental Protection Agency relied on what we believe was seriously flawed science. Carol Browner, the head of the EPA, has said that the agency has shown bias in the past. Her opinion is in concurrence with the Agency's self-assessment, Safeguarding the Future, which warns that there is a perception that the Agency's science is driven by ideology. • There are four basic concerns about the EPA report: The Agency did no research of its own; -- It combined the data of other researchers using a questionable method known as meta-analysis. Of the 30 studies initially reviewed by the EPA, 24 showed no overall statistically significant increased risk for lung cancer in non-smokers who reported exposure to ETS; S -- The EPA lowered its own standards of statistical significance to achieve the result we think was a foregone conclusion; -- The agency failed to include data from a National Cancer Institute study that would have eliminated the statistical significance of the EPA's findings, even by the Agency's own lowered standards of significance. • We are taking legal action against the EPA to force the agency to withdraw its classification of ETS as a carcinogen. • We know many people are annoyed by cigarette smoke in the air, and we think they should be able to choose not to be exposed to it. That's why we have created our Accommodation Program. We provide advice and materials to restaurateurs and other merchants on how to serve smokers and non-smokers alike. iI-D O ~ C,O O0 00 . ~

S • ETS and Children • Asthma among children has been increasing at a troubling rate, yet cigarette consumption in the U.S. has been declining at a 2 percent annual rate for the last ten years. • A growing number of complaints of childhood respiratory problems have been associated with poor indoor air quality in schools and day-care centers where smoking is prohibited and ETS is not a factor. • The scientific studies that have been done have not demonstrated that ETS, as opposed to other factors, is responsible for respiratory diseases in children. There are many factors that could contribute to respiratory problems in children. For example, schools in the south have been found to contain high levels of fungi and bacteria, both associated with respiratory problems. In addition, a recent study has reported that the EPA's standards for outdoor air are not sufficient to prevent respiratory diseases. • The problem of quantifying children's actual exposure to ETS was highlighted by I.B. Tager, a critic of parental smoking, when he stated in a scientific journal that "quantitative assessment of involuntary exposure of infants and children to ETS has been very imprecise and probably inaccurate." (In Chest 96(5), pp. 1161-4, 1989.) In Restaurants • In restaurants, we favor the accommodation of smokers and non-smokers alike through designated smoking and non-smoking areas. We oppose total bans. • Research shows that smoking and non-smoking areas do a good job of minimizing the exposure of non-smokers to tobacco smoke. Several studies have shown that a non- smoker would have to spend hundreds of hours in the non- smoking section of a restaurant to be exposed to the nicotine equivalent of one cigarette. In Work laces Z11D • We support the right of employers to determine a smoking Q policy which accommodates all their employees. We ~ oppose smoking bans in the workplace. ~ C,O

S In many cases, common sense and courtesy are sufficient to resolve employee disagreements over smoking. If employers and their employees determine that a workplace smoking policy is desirable, the policy should be fair and non-discriminatory. Smoking areas should be well maintained and easily accessible to all employees. In workplaces under union jurisdiction, unilaterally imposed smoking policies may infringe upon the collective bargaining rights of employees. There have been a number of cases in recent years where unions have rejected such policies. Workplace smoking policies often fail to address the real source of employee discomfort -- inadequate ventilation. Building ventilation systems can become choked with fungus, spores, mold and other allergenic substances. Tobacco smoke lingering in the air is the visible sign of a larger problem of inadequate ventilation -- it is not the problem itself. • ETS Liti_ga ion Two recent court cases have indicated that the courts will not be receptive to attempts to achieve smoking bans in restaurants and/or workplaces through litigation: -- In January of this year, a U.S. Connecticut recommended dismissal of mandating a smoking ban in fast food magistrate judge in a lawsuit aimed at restaurants on the basis of the Americans with Disabilities Act her ruling the judge stated that, "It is not under the ADA to impose a blanket no-smoking every [fast food restaurant] where there are restaurants which reasonably can accommodate smoking' area." (ADA) . In reasonable, ban on certain a 'no- -- Also in January, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the claim of a Virginia plaintiff that her employer's failure to provide her with a smoke-free work environment violated her constitutional rights. "We find that this argument is completely without merit, and reject it without further consideration," the Court said. The Court also rejected the plaintiff's claims under the Rehabilitation Act. 0