[Travelandtourism] Wisconsin smoking ban forbids smoking in everyhotel room:

[Tammy Cantrell]

As a non smoker, I love it!  I hate going into a room that is supposed to be 
non smoking and smell cigarette.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Peachtree Travel" <info at peachtreetravel.net>
To: "NFB Travel and Tourism Division List" <travelandtourism at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, September 02, 2010 6:30 PM
Subject: [Travelandtourism] Wisconsin smoking ban forbids smoking in 
everyhotel room:


> Unlike most other non-smoking states, Wisconsin in July passed a statewide
> smoking ban that bans smoking in every hotel guestroom.
>
> In most states that have banned smoking in public places, such as Kansas,
> the legislation allows hoteliers to exempt a certain percentage of
> guestrooms.
>
> But in Wisconsin, "there can be zero rooms" that allow smoking in sleeping
> rooms, Trisha Pugal, CEO of Wisconsin Hotel and Lodging Association told 
> me
> in an interview.
>
> And the new law is causing "a major culture change" for hoteliers and 
> guests
> alike.
>
> Wisconsin is the second state in the USA after Michigan to pass 
> anti-smoking
> legislation that doesn't exempt hotels, she said. The hotel association
> didn't exactly embrace the legislation. In fact, the group lobbied to let
> hotels retain a certain percentage of smoking rooms, but the proposal was
> shot down.
>
> Today, hoteliers say their biggest challenge with the smoking ban is
> convincing guests that it truly is the law - and that there are real
> consequences if they smoke in their room, according to Pugal.
>
> "People tend not to believe," she says. "We even created a signage guide 
> for
> lodging properties to help educate the guest. In the hospitality industry,
> you don't want to appear inhospitable."
>
> Wisconsin's roughly 2,000 hotels post signs declaring their building a
> non-smoking facility. They're also requiring guests to initial a statement
> promising to comply or face paying a fee. Hotels are charging penalty fees
> anywhere from $100 to $300, she said.
>
> "Unfortunately, there are people choosing to smoke anyway, even with all 
> the
> signage and initialing things saying they know there will be a penalty,"
> Pugal told me.
>
> Hotel staffers don't always know that a person smoked until a housekeeper
> gets into the room to clean it, sometimes creating "a logistical 
> nightmare"
> for the hotel if someone is waiting for the same room that then must be
> cleaned thoroughly, she said.
>
> Smoking guests who flout the law, however, aren't getting away with it.
> Hotels are charging the fee, in hopes that it will deter people from 
> smoking
> the next time.
>
> Whether the smoking ban is costing hotels business isn't yet clear. Pugal
> just yesterday sent member hotels a survey to see how the ban may be
> affecting their business.
>
> Smokers: Have you ever paid a fine to your hotel for smoking? Non-smokers:
> Have you ever been given a non-smoking room in which you've detected 
> smoke?
>
> Maurice
>
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>
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>
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