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A Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, urging the Pennsylvania General Assembly to enact a statewide smoking ban to protect the public health, ensure the comfort of all persons, and safeguard the environment by prohibiting smoking in public places and workplaces.
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WHEREAS, the use of tobacco products is dangerous not only to the person smoking, but also to nonsmokers who must breathe the contaminated air; and
WHEREAS, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has classified second-hand tobacco smoke as a Class A carcinogen, a classification reserved for the most lethal environmental hazards, such as asbestos, benzene, formaldehyde and radon; and
WHEREAS, approximately 53,000 nonsmokers in the United States die annually from lung and heart disease due to exposure to passive smoke; and
WHEREAS, according to the Surgeon General's 2006 report, “The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke,” nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke face up to a 30 percent risk of developing heart disease and lung cancer, and secondhand smoke exposure increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome and lower respiratory infections, such as pneumonia and bronchitis in children; and
WHEREAS, tobacco smoke is also responsible for up to 1,000,000 attacks of asthma, 8,000 to 26,000 new cases of asthma and significant reduction in lung function and causes serious middle ear infections among children each year; and
WHEREAS, the Surgeon General's 2006 report found that there is no risk-free level of secondhand smoke exposure, with even brief exposure adversely affecting the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, that only smoke-free environments effectively protect nonsmokers from secondhand smoke exposure in indoor spaces, and that millions of Americans continue to be exposed to secondhand smoke in their homes and workplaces; and
WHEREAS, 23 states and the District of Columbia have laws in effect t...
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