Smoking ban coming to Indiana?

Smoking fans in Indiana may find themselves having a hard time when it comes to smoking in public if one lawmaker gets his wish. Charlie Brown, an Indiana State Representative who just won the state's Legislator of the Year Award for 2010, plans to introduce a bill next year that would ban public smoking.

Brown is no stranger to introducing smoking ban bills that would affect Indiana residents statewide. In fact, this next attempt would be his fourth at enacting such anti-smoking regulations. While many states do have some type of smoking legislation in play, Brown's plan for Indiana would include zero exemptions for businesses such as casinos, bars, or restaurants. Brown's reasoning for a no-exemption bill is that he feels if one exemption was accepted, then many other businesses would try to secure ones as well, leading to a domino effect.

A strict smoking ban in all public establishments could lead to plenty of backlash. Many patrons enjoy going out to eat, drink, and socialize while occasionally smoking. A complete ban on smoking could lead them to stay at home or seek other alternatives to going out, which would hurt local business revenue. At this time, Indiana's smoking legislation is quite limited, with the exception of Indianapolis, which has a smoking ban on all places of employment that accept patrons under the age of 18.