By Micheal Chukwuebuka, Reporting
IN the U.S., smoking in cars with children is banned in 11 states, and lawmakers are pushing to join them in West Virginia, where, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more adults use cigarettes than anywhere else in the nation.
Our source, ABC News, reported that the state Senate on Monday passed a bill calling for fines for anyone caught smoking or possessing a lit tobacco product in a vehicle when someone age 16 or under is present.
Stonix News gathered that the bill passed on 25-8 vote and now goes to the House of Delegates, where similar legislation has failed and it faces an uncertain future.
The Kanawha County and lung doctor, who is now a Senate Majority Leader, Tom Takubo, said the inspiration for the bill was a patient who was not a smoker but lost half of her lung function because her father was a heavy smoker.
“She had to climb down to the bottom of the car and put her head underneath the seat, whenever her father smoked,” Takubo said.
Although it would be a secondary offense, but violators would face a misdemeanor subject to a maximum fine of $25.
Meanwhile, Wood County Republican, Sen. Mike Azinger, said the state has no right to infringe on parents’ freedoms.
“The arguments for the bill are essentially emotional arguments.
“This is a cut at the fundamental rights of parents making a decision over their children in their vehicles.
“This is a state going where it has no business going,” Azinger said.
What's your reaction?
