A proposed smoking ban in Madison bars and restaurants has recently made its way into the City Council due to combined efforts from city alders and University of Wisconsin students.

City Council President Mike Verveer said the ban is controversial and is divided in support in the City Council.

The ban would change the law that has been in effect for the past 10 years, which governs the legality of smoking in public places, according to Verveer.

All smoking in restaurants and bars that gain 33 percent of their revenue from alcohol must be eliminated by January 2005, under the new proposal. By January 2006, the proposal would also outlaw smoking in restaurants and bars that gain between 33 and 50 percent of their revenue from alcohol.

The law would set the standards for no smoking in public places with few exemptions. It would also help define the uncertain line between smoking and nonsmoking areas in bars and restaurants.

However, Verveer and many bar owners, students and City Council members find the ban controversial. So far, the proposal has gone through two City Council committees and received no recommendation despite the well-known dangers associated with smoking and secondhand smoke.

“The simplest way to say it is that secondhand smoke can lead to lung cancer and respiratory disease,” Dr. Kathryn Vedder from the Madison Public Health Department said. “It is clearly an accepted danger.”

Despite health concerns, students remain divided on the issue.

“I’m not a fan of smoking in bars. The secondhand smoke is bothersome, and you come home smelling like an ashtray,” UW freshman Greylen Erlacher said.

Vedder also said a smoking ban could cut down on the number of college students who begin smoking because they would not be exposed to smoke in bars, restaurants and bowling alleys. A smoking ban could also work to keep bar and restaurant employees freer of possible health risks.

“Bartenders are in the highest-risk group for lung cancer and respiratory disease in the country,” Vedder said.

State Street Brats manager Dustin DiMarco said he has mixed feelings on a proposed smoking ban in bars.

“It would be nice to work in a smoke-free environment, but [State Street Brats] has to respect the wish of our customers,” DiMarco said.

Others agree the smoking ban would provide pleasant working conditions.

“It would certainly be cleaner, but either way, the staff has accepted the working conditions,” Shawn Knoche, an employee at Blue Moon Bar and Grill said.

Knoche said he thinks the ban will affect business because people will be forced to go elsewhere to smoke.

Unlike some bars and restaurants, State Street Brats has a unique situation. They have an outdoor patio where smokers can go, with or without the proposed ban.

DiMarco said he thinks there will not be a real decline or change in business because people will leave to go outside and smoke on the patio and then return because of the social scene offered in bars and restaurants.

“My basic question is if there is a smoking ban, will my bartending staff have to worry about it?” DiMarco said. “I would rather have the police deal with it instead of my staff.”

Verveer also commented on difficulties surrounding crowd control and proper staffing if smokers are forced to go outside and smoke, especially in winter months.