November 18, 2021
Contact: press@no-smoke.org
Atlantic City, NJ— Following comments from Senate President Steve Sweeney on the prospects of passing legislation during the lameduck session to make New Jersey casinos smokefree indoors, Cynthia Hallett, President and CEO of Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights issued the following statement:
“Atlantic City casinos are pushing for a tax break worth millions while fighting legislation that would protect their frontline employees from secondhand smoke. Legislative leaders should not be prioritizing this tax break as well as casinos’ special loophole in state law. They should also prioritize closing the casino loophole so that casino workers no longer have to choose between their health and a paycheck. Anything short of this would only send the wrong message that these workers don’t matter.”
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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