LANSING-Today State Senator Hansen Clarke (D-Detroit) hailed the bipartisan passage of legislation that would ban smoking in all Michigan workplaces, including bars and restaurants. The Senate voted to pass HB 4163 by a vote of 25-12. Sen. Clarke is a co-sponsor of similar legislation in the Senate, SB 109.

"I first decided to support this legislation after hearing about a woman in her 20’s who never smoked, but died of lung cancer because she lived with her father, who was a smoker,” said Sen. Clarke. “We need to protect non-smokers from second-hand smoke, which numerous studies have linked to cancer, asthma, emphysema and other diseases.”

Last December, the Michigan House voted 56-46 with bipartisan support to pass HB 4163, sponsored by Rep. Brenda Clack (D-Flint). Following today’s vote, the bill heads back to the House for concurrence before heading to the Governor for approval.

Every day, thousands of Michigan residents who work in bars, restaurants, offices and factories are involuntarily subjected to second-hand smoke. According to the American Cancer Society, second-hand smoke is the third leading preventable cause of death in the United States, killing 38,000 to 65,000 nonsmokers every year. A study conducted at the University of California, Berkeley found that food service workers are approximately 50 percent more likely to develop lung cancer than the general public, because many are exposed to second-hand smoke at work.

Thirty-three states have already passed similar legislation to protect their workers from deadly exposure to secondhand smoke, including Ohio, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota.

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