June 2, 2022
Contact: press@no-smoke.org
Press of AC/ProPublica Report Lays Bare Why NJ Legislators Cannot Trust Casino Claims on Smoking
Atlantic City, NJ – Cynthia Hallett, president and CEO of Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights, released the following statement after the Press of Atlantic City and ProPublica published a major story this morning highlighting how Atlantic City casinos misled legislators to get tax breaks fast-tracked through the legislature:
“The PILOT fiasco makes clear how the casinos mislead and twist the facts to get what they want. They’re trying to do the same as they fight getting rid of indoor smoking. New Jersey legislators should not take seriously casinos crying poor and claiming the sky will fall if they end the outdated business practice of allowing indoor smoking. It’s about protecting their workers’ health, period. How many cancer diagnoses, heart attacks and pregnant women breathing secondhand smoke while dealing tables games are enough to spur action? The good news is that nearly half of all legislators in each chamber are co-sponsoring the bipartisan bills to eliminate the 16-year-old casino smoking loophole. Now it’s time to hold a hearing and bring the bills to a full floor vote – we know they will pass with flying colors.”
ABOUT AMERICANS FOR NONSMOKERS’ RIGHTS
Americans for Nonsmoker’s Rights (ANR) is a member-supported, non-profit advocacy group that has been working for 45 years, since 1976, to protect everyone’s right to breathe nontoxic air in workplaces and public places, from offices and airplanes to restaurants, bars, and casinos. ANR has continuously shined a light on the tobacco industry’s interference with sound and life-saving public health measures and successfully protected 61% of the population with local or statewide smokefree workplace, restaurant, and bar laws. ANR aims to close gaps in smokefree protections for workers in all workplaces, including bars, music venues, casinos, and hotels. For more information, please visit https://no-smoke.org/ and https://smokefreecasinos.org/.
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