Smoke Free Wisconsin In The News

by Eric Lindquist 

A recent study by the nonpartisan Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group determined there is no reliable evidence to support claims that smoking bans have an adverse effect on the hospitality industry.

The study, titled "Smoke and Mirrors: Tobacco Industry Claims Unfounded," looked at the economic impact of smoking bans enacted in 2005 in Appleton and Madison. It found that the number of licensed liquor establishments in Madison rose from 332 before the ban to 365 in January 2008, while Appleton established a waiting list for liquor licenses for the first time after its ban started.

WISPIRG also found that the assessed valuation of business districts in both cities had increased since the bans took effect. The study was undertaken as Wisconsin legislators were debating a statewide smoking ban, something that 22 other states have instituted.

Terry Harvath, head of the Outagamie County Tavern League and an Appleton bar owner, scoffed at the measures used in the study.

"The problem with just counting liquor licenses is that it fails to tell people that about six bars have closed and the owners are trying to sell the businesses with the licenses," Harvath said. "I just laugh when I hear people using us as a success story."

Mark Miller, co-owner of The Bar on the Avenue in Appleton, added that at least two of that city's liquor licenses have gone to coffee shops seeking to mix alcohol in some of their coffees, making the number of licenses a misleading indicator of tavern business health.

But Bruce Speight, public interest advocate for WISPIRG, argued that nearly all peer-reviewed studies of the impact on communities across the country that have implemented smoking bans show the overall results to be either neutral or positive.

"It's no surprise that Big Tobacco and its allies are trying to scare us with tales of economic ruin," Speight said. "This report shows that we can have smoke-free bars and a healthy economy."