O'Fallon City Smoking Ban Question (April 2011)

A O'Fallon City Smoking Ban Question was on the April 5, 2011 ballot in the city of O'Fallon, which is in St. Charles County.

This measure was approved

• YES 7,217 (72.58%)a
• NO 2,726 (27.42%)

This measure sought to prohibit smoking indoors including in restaurants, bars, workplaces and stores. This proposal was brought forth by a successful petition drive which collected the needed 1,900 signatures to get the measure certified; this was the first time citizens had exercised their right of initiative petitioning since it was adopted in 2009. The council noted that although they approved the measure for the ballot it did not mean they supported the measure, most of the member believed it was an issue best left for the people to decide. Business owners express mixed feelings about the measure, noting that the ban will be bad for some businesses, like a bingo night held at a Elks Lodge, but breathing easier will be a benefit. The ban will turn away residents from Illinois which has a ban on all public area smoking, and would mean a loss of revenues. Though proponents of the ban still stressed the health issue, the right to breathe clean air, as the main force behind the measure.