HANCOCK - Michigan has a law prohibiting the smoking of tobacco in all public spaces, but now there's a movement to ban smoking in apartment buildings in the state, both public and private.
Jim Bergman, who is an attorney and founder and director of the Smoke-Free Environments Law Project in Ann Arbor, was touring the Upper Peninsula to discuss the effort to make apartments smoke free this week, and he stopped Wednesday at the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department main office in Hancock.
Bergman said in 2005, the public housing commission in Cadillac was the first in Michigan to establish a smoke-free policy for its units, and in 2006, the Sault Ste. Marie Housing Commission was the first in the U.P. to make its apartments smoke free. Now, there are 45 smoke-free housing commissions in the state with such a policy, including 10 in the U.P., and the number is growing rapidly.
Although there was considerable resistance for years to the idea of a smoke-free public-places policy for the entire state, Bergman said the resistance for such policies in public housing doesn't seem to be very strong.
"Generally, people follow these policies," he said.
Bergman said that compliance may come from the fact that 80 percent of adults don't smoke, and 90 percent of seniors don't smoke.
The Smoke-Free Environments Law Project began in 1999, Bergman said. He worked with the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department to help establish its Clean Indoor Air Regulation in 2008. That regulation was superseded by the state law, which went into effect May 1.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, as states around the country established smoke-free laws, Bergman said the effect was noticeable.
"The complaints about smoking in work places dropped," he said.
However, at the same time, complaints about tobacco smoke increased in apartment buildings, both public and private, where there were no restrictions to smoking.
"Most apartment owners thought it was illegal to have a smoke-free policy," he said.
In 1992, Bergman said then-Michigan Attorney General Frank Kelly ruled it was legal for apartment owners to set no-smoking policies.
"Kelly said not only can you have a smoke-free policy, he said you can refuse to rent to smokers," he said.
Bergman said he disagreed with that part of Kelly's ruling.
Over the years, Bergman said he's had difficulties getting a consistent answer on establishing smoke-free policies for public housing from the federal Housing and Urban Development agency, which provides much of the funding for subsidized housing. Some officials said yes, while others said no. However, now HUD officials are encouraging the establishment of smoke-free policies for public housing.
Hancock Housing Commission member, John Haeussler, said in March that board established a smoke-free policy for its Lakeview Manor and annex building, which went into effect in April. That policy states current residents who are smokers can continue, but when those people leave, their apartments will become smoke free.
"We took a middle of the road approach," he said.
The reason for taking that approach, Haeussler said, was because the board didn't want to force people to choose between quitting smoking and moving out of the building.
"These are people's homes," he said.
Haeussler said the plan is to eventually make all the housing commission's buildings smoke free, which could take years, but it may be in the future, a federal or state agency or law may force the board to make a quicker change to smoke free.
Many private apartment owners are establishing smoke-free policies, also, Bergman said, mostly for financial reasons - Smokers often cause fires in apartment buildings, and cleaning after smokers leave an apartment is more costly than cleaning a non-smoker's apartment.
"It's legal, it's good for business, and it's good for health," Bergman said of establishing smoke-free policies.
Bergman said smoke-free policies at public housing apartment buildings is a growing movement. In 2005, there were only 17 with such policies in the country.
"Today, there's a little over 200," he said.
Gail Ploe, prevention specialist with the health department, said when smoke-free policies are established, there is a noticeable effect.
"Smoking goes down," she said. "The consumption drops significantly."
When the Michigan smoke-free law went into effect, Ploe said she got very busy.
"My phone was ringing off the hook from people trying to find (stop-smoking) kits," she said.
Bergman said he's heard from people who quit smoking because of the establishment of smoke-free laws or policies.
Tobacco use is an important part of Native American culture, but Bergman said even some tribal housing groups, such as the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Sault Ste. Marie, established smoke-free housing.
One issue which is posing a problem with smoke-free regulations in apartment buildings is whether the use of medical marijuana will be allowed, but Bergman said HUD officials have made it clear since possession and use of marijuana are still federal crimes, its use will not be allowed in HUD subsidized housing.
"If (apartment managers) don't enforce it, they have a compliance issue," he said.
For more information about smoke-free apartment buildings, go online to mismokefreeapartment.org.
Kurt Hauglie can be reached at khauglie@mininggazette.com.