Bingos an Afterthought in Smoking Ban Politics Part II

We are hearing various rumblings about what the House will do regarding the smoking ban, but nothing appears set in stone. One unfavorable outcome is that they may introduce a version of the smoking ban only exempting casinos. If this happens, it is likely that amendments will be proposed to exempt charitable bingos and/or the private clubs as well. However, whether or not these amendments would be voted in remains in question.

If no amendments are added, we could have a smoking ban that exempts only the casinos. This would be the worst possible scenario for charitable bingos. If both regular casinos and Native American casinos (which compete directly with bingo halls) can permit smoking while charitable bingos must ban it, it would unfairly widen the playing field considerably.

As we have mentioned before, it is unfortunate that very few politicians or reporters consider the effect a smoking ban will have on charitable bingos and private clubs. Studies have shown (and we can point to a mountain of anecdotal evidence as well) that smoking bans kill many bingos. Bingos, for whatever reason, have a large smoking population. And, bingos compete directly with casinos.

We hope that when the politicians finalize this legislation, they don't forget the many beneficial projects that charitable bingos and their organizations provide. Wehope that if all casinos are going to remain exempt from a smoking ban, that bingos are allowed the same rights as their competitors.