Smoking Legislation
Jimmy Murphy’s letter (May 23) supporting proposed AB 996 regulating smoking in public places is misleading.
AB 996, introduced by Assemblyman Curtis Tucker Jr. (D-Inglewood), is a smoke screen favored by the tobacco industry to confuse and mislead the public. If passed, it would prohibit cities and counties from imposing smoking bans, forcing local communities to adopt state regulations, where in 1992 Philip Morris and RJR-Nabisco gave $2.8 million and the Tobacco Institute $812,000 to Assembly races and lobbying (March 10).
AB 996 is also meant to defeat AB 13, introduced by Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman (D-Brentwood), which would be real protection for Californians against secondhand smoke.
TED WU
Los Angeles
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