6 hours ago • BY HANNAH DOUGLAS, JG-TC Springfield Bureau
SPRINGFIELD — A resolution recommending that Illinois motorists not smoke with children in the car cleared a House panel unanimously Tuesday.
State Rep. Marcus Evans, Jr., D- Chicago, sponsored the measure that seeks to address the dangers of secondhand smoke. Evans also introduced a proposal that would ban drivers from smoking with children under 13 in the car, but said it will not move this session.
“I want a discussion for action,” Evans said. “I want people to stop smoking around their children and lead healthier lives.”
Evans said there wasn’t official opposition to that ban, but there might have been had the measure advanced.
State Rep. Mike Bost, R- Murphysboro, was among those who said he’d have voted against the proposed law if it had come up for a vote.
Although it is good to advise parents and other drivers on this issue, state oversight on the issue isn’t necessary, Bost said.
“We can let parents be parents … I don’t think we need it,” Bost said.
However, Evans said that if people would stop smoking with children in the car, he wouldn’t need to introduce a measure that bans the behavior.
The resolution next moves to the full House.
And although the resolution is only a recommendation, currently five states — Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Maine, and Utah — ban smoking in vehicles with children at various ages, according to Global Advisors on Smokefree Policy, a New Jersey based non-profit organization.
A similar measure banning smoking in vehicles with children ages 8 and under was introduced in 2010, but it did not clear the House.
The legislation is House Resolution 146 and House Bill 2939.
Contact Douglas at hannah.douglas@lee.net or 217-528-1079.
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