LOCAL : Braude Urges Total Smoking Ban in All L.A. Restaurants

City Councilman Marvin Braude, in a bid to protect nonsmoking diners from secondhand smoke, proposed today that Los Angeles become the first major city in the nation to ban smoking in all restaurants.

The city, whose 3.5 million residents endure the nation’s worst air, already has a 2-year-old law that requires restaurants with 50 or more seats to set aside 50% of their tables for nonsmokers.

Citing a recent report at the World Conference on Lung Health, which estimated that 32,000 people die each year due to exposure to secondhand smoke, Braude said “the time has come” for a complete smoking ban at all restaurants.

Perhaps the most publicized prohibition against smoking in restaurants was adopted in 1987 by Beverly Hills, but under pressure from restaurateurs, the city’s lawmakers later weakened the law, allowing restaurants to set up smoking sections for up to 50% of their customers.

Several hundred municipalities require nonsmoking areas in restaurants, but only the resort community of Aspen, Colo., has a complete ban, Braude said.