Mayor backs anti-smoking measure

Mayor Kirk Caldwell said he supports the idea of barring adults from smoking in vehicles when children are present, and would likely sign such a measure should it make it to his desk.

Bill 70 is up for first reading on Wednesday’s Honolulu City Council agenda. The ban would apply to traditional tobacco as well as electronic cigarettes.

The bill introduced by Council members Brandon Elefante and Ron Menor is “on the right track,” Caldwell recently told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “And I hope it does pass and, should it pass through legal review (by the city Department of Corporation Counsel), I would sign it into law.”

Caldwell pointed out that as mayor, he’s signed bills banning smoking at parks and near bus stops, and that he introduced anti-smoking measures when he was in the state Legislature.

“In enclosed vehicles, when someone’s smoking, there’s no choice but to inhale that smoke,” the mayor said.

He defended any criticism that the bill would represent overregulation. “I would say that when you’re endangering the health of a child, I think there is a broader policy issue here,” he said. “And as we all know, smoking does affect one’s health and that does become a burden for the rest of our community. And if we can raise healthier children, I think it’s worth the passing of this law.”

The state Department of Health has also thrown its support behind the ban on smoking when children are passengers.

“Leading health authorities throughout the world concur that there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke, and that the only effective way to protect people from harm is to totally eliminate smoking in enclosed spaces,” the department said, in advance written testimony.

“Extensive scientific literature shows that passive smoke exposure in a confined space — such as inside a car — is particularly harmful,” DOH said. “The concentration of toxins in a smoke-filled car can be several times greater than that of a smoky bar, and children are more vulnerable.”

Hawaii County has had a similar prohibition in place since 2010 while Kauai County passed legislation prohibiting smoking in vehicles with youths under 13 in 2016.

Efforts for a statewide ban have so far failed. Nationally, eight states and two U.S. territories have enacted laws against smoking in cars where children are present.

On another measure under consideration by the Council this week, Caldwell is urging passage of Bill 69, which requires high-rise residential buildings to install sprinkler systems. The measure was introduced in the wake of the July 14 Marco Polo condominium fire that left three people dead and dozens of units damaged.

That bill is also up for first reading Wednesday.

The Marco Polo was built in 1971, four years before the city passed a law requiring all new high-rises to include automated sprinkler systems.

Caldwell, who asked for introduction of the bill, said he wants it passed while the Marco Polo incident is still top of mind. “It’s a difficult issue to deal with, so they put it off for another delay, until there’s another fire and someone else is either injured or killed,” he said. “We don’t want that to happen.”

In response to concerns by some condo owners, Council members have raised the idea of finding ways to lessen the cost of installation for owners.

“I think we need to look at ‘how do you pay for it,’ whether it’s incentives or some other measure,” Caldwell said. “But we have to approach it from an overall level playing field of fairness. There are those who don’t live in high-rises, who don’t have sprinklers in their homes, who may want those incentives, too. And how far do we go to address this?”

Caldwell said he’d like the Council to first address buildings of higher than 75 feet, which is the extent of firetruck ladders, and leave the issue of financing to an upcoming building safety advisory panel.