Smoking fix too risky?

Given that it was brainless of the Legislature to pass a public smoking ban hypocritically exempting state-owned casinos, it should be a no-brainer to fix the law next session. Regrettably, judging from a recent gubernatorial debate and The Eagle editorial board’s interviews with legislative candidates, an attempted repair may be too risky and even lead to a repeal.

After Kansas joined the 34 states with public smoking bans — with votes of 68-54 in the House and 25-15 in the Senate and polls showing more than 65 percent public support — all sides seemed to agree on the need to remove the casino exemption. The only stated opposition was coming from representatives of the Boot Hill Casino and Resort in Dodge City and the planned Wyandotte County casino, because of the worry that revenues would fall.

Then, remarkably, all four candidates for governor said during a recent Wichita debate that they oppose the ban, after GOP front-runner Sam Brownback and Democrat Tom Holland had told The Eagle’s voter guide, respectively, that changing the law wasn’t an “immediate priority” and that the current law was satisfactory. During the debate, Brownback and Holland found a rare moment of agreement in arguing that smoking bans should be left up to local governments, and Libertarian Andrew Gray and Reform Party candidate Ken Cannon cast it as an issue of business rights.

Meanwhile, a number of candidates for the Statehouse have signaled their interest in voting for a repeal, fueling the impression that the flawed law may be better left alone.

It’s sad that there are any second thoughts about Kansas’ new statewide ban, considering how much undeniable scientific evidence there is that smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke raise the risk of heart attack, stroke, lung cancer and other diseases — which add up to $196 million a year in Medicaid costs that the state must cover. Even Greece, where 40 percent of the population smokes, found the political will this year to crack down on indoor smoking. A strict law will go into effect in Spain in 2011, and a full European Union ban is in the works.

Yet in Kansas, the momentum among leaders risks going the wrong way — against public health and the recognition that government has a fiscal responsibility to ban public smoking.

Of the casino exemption, Brownback has told reporters: “This is so hypocritical. It really hurts the moral authority of the government when it does things like this.”

No argument there.

But it’s now unclear whether. as governor, Brownback would sign a smoking ban with the casino exemption excised or instead back a repeal effort.

Proponents of a clean statewide public indoor smoking ban should proceed with caution rather than give up. After having enjoyed six months of clean air, most Kansans aren’t likely to be eager to welcome the smoke back to bars, restaurants and workplaces. But proponents may need to back off if it comes down to a choice between the current ban and no ban.

— For the editorial board, Rhonda Holman