| For Immediate Release September 13, 2006 |
Contact: Jennifer Friedman 202.296.5469 |
Maryland Voters Take A Stand For Right to Breathe Clean Air by Electing Jim Rosapepe
Statement of William V. Corr, Executive Director, Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund
Washington, DC - By choosing Jim Rosapepe over John Giannetti in yesterday's District 21 Democratic State Senate primary, Maryland voters took a stand against Big Tobacco and stood up for the right of all workers and families to breathe clean air. Marylanders have confirmed their support for smoke-free workplaces and their intolerance for special interests by ousting John Giannetti, who has not supported the smoke-free law and has voted in support of the tobacco industry. Voters instead chose Jim Rosapepe, who has stood up to Big Tobacco and supports a smoke-free Maryland.
The primary results underscore the strong public support for smoke-free laws that protect everyone from the serious health harms of secondhand smoke. In the weeks leading up to the primary, the Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund launched an independent, direct mail and voter contact campaign to educate Maryland voters about the clear contrast between the records of Jim Rosapepe and John Giannetti when it comes to fighting tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke. The campaign highlighted Jim Rosapepe's support of a statewide smoke-free workplace law and John Giannetti's ties to special interests, including Big Tobacco, and his failure to support smoke-free legislation in Maryland.
We will continue our efforts in the coming weeks to educate Maryland voters about other candidates' positions on the smoke-free law because the need for protection from secondhand smoke has never been clearer. In issuing his groundbreaking report on secondhand smoke on June 27, U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona stated, "The debate is over. The science is clear: Secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance, but a serious health hazard that causes premature death and disease in children and nonsmoking adults."
The Surgeon General found that secondhand smoke is a proven cause of lung cancer, heart disease, serious respiratory illnesses such as bronchitis and asthma, low birth weight and sudden infant death syndrome. The Surgeon General also found that secondhand smoke is responsible for tens of thousands of deaths in the United States each year and that there is no risk-free level of exposure.
The Surgeon General's report also confirmed that smoke-free laws protect health without harming business. To date, 14 states, Washington, DC and Puerto Rico have passed smoke-free laws that include restaurants and bars. The states are: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii (effective Nov. 16), Maine, Massachusetts, Montana, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont and Washington (the Montana and Utah laws extend to bars in 2009, while the DC law does so on January 1, 2007).