How Florida's ban on smoking at indoor workplaces will be enforced is anyone's guess. But you can complain via the phone or the Web.
By MARCUS FRANKLIN and DONG-PHUONG NGUYEN
Published July 1, 2003
PINELLAS PARK - Glen Lowery, who has been bowling for 33 years and smoking since he was 18, takes a drag or two from a Pall Mall cigarette after every other frame to help his game.
"It's relaxing," Lowery, 65, said the other night at Sunshine Bowl on 34th Street N. "It releases the tension."
Starting today, Lowery may have to chew gum or suck on candy while he's bowling as Florida's indoor workplace smoking ban takes effect.
With a few exceptions, smoking now is illegal in most businesses, including restaurants, bowling alleys and bars that sell a certain amount of food.
But how the ban will be enforced remains uncertain.
The state is urging businesses to call police if anyone refuses to put out a cigarette. But officials at some police departments say they hope to have as little as possible to do with enforcing the ban.
Tampa police said they will not stake out restaurants and bars in search of the bright orange glow.
"At this point, I think it's safe to say that our involvement will be limited to a role as a mediator between proprietor and patron," Capt. Bob Guidara said.
If the smoker refuses to snuff out the cigarette and police are called, the person could be charged with trespassing, Guidara said.
"What the public has to understand is that we will be traveling through a period of public education," he said. "How the public addresses concerns of this nature and those concerns should be directed to the regulation authority."
St. Petersburg police are taking a similar position.
"There's nothing in the law that advises us to enforce it," said George Kajtsa, a department spokesman. "We can respond to a trespassing complaint."
Kevin Krauss, whose family owns Sunshine Bowl, laughed at the prospect that police officers will enforce the smoking ban. "Do you think the police in St. Petersburg or the Sheriff's Office are going to come out and tell someone to put a cigarette out?" he asked.
For now, state officials will be relying primarily on the public to identify businesses that fail to enforce the ban. The state has a Web site and a phone number where complaints can be filed.
"It's a complaint-driven system," said Pat Palmer, deputy director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco. "We're not going to be going out and doing audits and inspections of these places to make sure they're complying with the law. We're not doing a proactive inspection. That's not part of the process."
As state officials work out details of enforcement, business owners are scrambling to adjust to life under the smoking ban.
John Walter, owner of JR's Floribbean Bar-B-Q & Grille in Seffner, isn't afraid of losing customers. He's planning to direct them a couple of miles away to his new venture: a takeout barbecue restaurant with an outdoor tiki bar where customers can smoke.
The restaurant portion opens this week and the bar at the end of this month. Patrons will be able to buy fall-off-the-bone barbecue ribs to go and walk several feet to the tiki bar, where they can light up and enjoy their meals in the smoky outdoors.
Walker is even talking about offering cigarettes and cigars if he can get a permit.
"I'm not advocating smoking to anybody, but at the same time, there are people who have the desire," said Walter, a smoker. "There's still a market for smokers, no matter what."
At Central Avenue Oyster Bar in downtown St. Petersburg, about 40 percent of the business comes from the bar, which seats about 35. From 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. a DJ spins music, giving the place more of a bar-nightclub feel, general manager Trevor McGinty said.
But the oyster bar isn't eligible for an exemption to allow smoking. Only bars that serve snacks such as popcorn or get no more than 10 percent of gross revenue from food sales are eligible.
McGinty is certain business will suffer despite plans to add a few seats outdoors.
"There's nights when the bar is completely packed and there's nobody in the dining room," said McGinty, 25, a smoker. "Everybody who likes to drink likes to smoke, for the most part."
Lowery, the bowler at Sunshine Bowl, may not care to drink while he's bowling. But he needs his smokes. He usually goes through a pack during an evening at the bowling alley.
One of Lowery's bowling teams worked out a way to cope with the ban. The members voted to a have an outdoor smoking break after every fifth frame.
To file a complaint
Complaints can be made at www.state.fl.us/dbpr or by calling (850) 487-1395.
For businesses besides restaurants and bars, contact the state Department of Health by calling toll-free 1-800-337-3742.
Smoking ban
As of today, smoking is banned in indoor workplaces under a constitutional amendment approved in November.
Exempted from the ban
Bars that serve only "customary bar snacks," such as popcorn, or generate no more than 10 percent of gross revenue from food sales.
Membership association facilities such as VFW halls.
U.S. Customs lounges at international airports.
Designated rooms at hotels and motels.
Homes not used for child, adult or health care services.
Retail tobacco shops.
Outdoor patio sections of restaurants.
Smoking cessation programs.
Medical or scientific research.
Who will enforce the ban?
The Florida Department of Health, and the divisions of Hotels and Restaurants, and Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco at the Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
Penalties
For business owners or managers: For the first violation, the owner
or manager of a business in violation will get a warning to comply with
the smoking ban within 30 days. For the first violation after the warning,
the civil penalty is $250 to $750; each additional violation carries a
fine of $500 to $2,000. If someone who has been fined still refuses to
comply, authorities can file a complaint in circuit court.
For smokers: Anyone who smokes in an indoor workplace under the ban
may be fined up to $100 for the first violation and up to $500 for subsequent
violations.
Exemptions
Bars that serve only snack foods, such as popcorn, or derive 10 percent or less of gross revenues from food may file for an exemption. Form 6039 with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation must be completed before smoking is allowed at the bar. To get the form, call the department's Customer Contact Center at 850 487-1395 or go to www.myfloridalicense.com or www.state.fl.us/dbpr/abt/forms/index.shtml
