Gov. Mary Fallin's support may make difference with smoke-free bill

Fallin's backing may help get this effort across the finish line. State Health Commissioner Terry Cline has been trying for years to sway the Legislature, which has rebuffed him for one reason or another.

Two years ago, overly broad language doomed the bill's chances. That bill would have let municipalities pass laws not just regarding where people can smoke, but also concerning such things as the advertising, display and taxation of tobacco products. Retailers squawked about that, with good reason.

The language was removed and last year the bill made it out of the House but stalled in a Senate committee. Cline is concerned that this year's bill, Senate Bill 36 by Sen. Frank Simpson, R-Ardmore, has been assigned to the same committee where it died last year.

The Senate should give the bill every consideration. It doesn't let cities dictate where and how tobacco is marketed, sold or taxed. It's intended to give municipalities the discretion to make public places, such as restaurants and bars, smoke free if they choose.