Alley vacation up for vote

The city council’s Public Works Committee this week will consider vacating part of the north/south alley north of Williams Street and east of North Vermilion Street for a drive-through tobacco shop.

The new shop would be located in the little strip mall on the northeast corner of Williams and Vermilion streets, at 501 N. Vermilion St., according to Mayor Scott Eisenhauer.

Shicia Wang of Urbana is paying the city $1,307 for the alley vacation.

In other business, the committee will consider:

-- Approving about $88,000 in additional sewer work by Atlas Excavating of West Lafayette, Ind., in the areas of Oak, Franklin and Walnut streets and Vermilion Street from Voorhees to Roselawn.

The city requested additional work: to extend portions of the improvement north after finding conflicts with existing utilities, to repair and replace collapsed storm sewers and to pay for work on a time and material basis in areas where telephone duct banks could not be relocated or taken out of service.

The total contract: $779,866.

-- Approving an additional $15,000 in Danville Stadium roof work by Craftmasters Roofing of Decatur. Additional work was needed for installation of new sheeting on the front overhang of the roof, which was found once overhang was exposed to view.

The funds come from the city’s Parks and Public Property maintenance of buildings’ funds.

-- Approving a contract for a poured concrete floor for the parks storage and maintenance facility at the Voorhees Street Public Works Operations Center. City officials were to open bids today. Funds come from the city’s capital budget for buildings.

-- Authorizing Eisenhauer to enter into an engineering agreement, not to exceed $54,500, to perform a traffic-use study at various schools: Danville High School, North Ridge Middle School, Edison Elementary and East Park Elementary.

The Danville Area Transportation Study has budgeted and given approval for the city to enter into an agreement to assess and make traffic pattern recommendations that will tie into future Jackson Street improvements.

The city’s 20 percent funding for the project comes from the Midtown Tax Increment Financing District.

Eisenhauer said the city has three engineering proposals to consider.

-- Prohibiting parking on both sides of Griffin Street between Main and Voorhees streets. The city plans to stripe newly paved Griffin with two 10-foot travel lanes and two 5-foot shoulders to move traffic away from the curb line to increase pavement life and to allow for easier passage of fire safety equipment and buses.

Children Living In Apartments With Nonsmoking Adults Still Exposed

The majority of children living in apartments are exposed to secondhand smoke, even when they don't live with smokers. This study from the University of Rochester Medical Center is the first to examine whether housing type is a potential contributor to children's exposure to cigarette smoke. The abstract was presented May 1st at the Pediatric Academic Society Meeting in Vancouver, Canada.

Among children who lived in an apartment, 84 percent had been exposed to tobacco smoke, according to the level of a biomarker (cotinine) in their blood that indicates exposure to nicotine found in tobacco, and this included more than 9 of 10 African-American and white children. Even among children who lived in detached houses, 70 percent showed evidence of exposure.

"We are starting to understand the role that seepage through walls and through shared ventilation may impact tobacco smoke exposure in apartments," said Karen Wilson, M.D., MPH, author of the study and an assistant professor of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center's Golisano Children's Hospital. "We see that children are being exposed in ways we are not picking up, and it's important, for their health, that we figure out where this exposure is taking place, and work to eliminate it. Multi-unit housing is one potential source, but a very important one."


Previous studies have shown that children with cotinine levels indicating tobacco smoke exposure have higher rates of respiratory diseases, decreased cognitive abilities and decreased antioxidant levels.

The study analyzed data from almost 6,000 children between 6- and 18-years-old in a national database (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001-2006) to see if there was any relationship between their smoke exposure and their housing type. Apartment living was associated with a 45 percent increase in cotinine levels for African American children and a 207 percent increase for white children. About 18 percent of U.S. children live in apartments, and many of these children are living in subsidized housing communities where smoking is more prevalent.

Wilson said many parents are trying to limit their children's tobacco smoke exposure by not allowing smoking in their apartments, but they say they can smell tobacco smoke coming from other apartments or from common areas. Last summer, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released a memo recommending that their housing developments enact smoke-free policies. A smoking ban within multi-unit, subsidized housing could further reduce the tobacco smoke exposure for children and reduce smoking rates among residents.

This study was funded by the AAP Julius B. Richmond Center of Excellence, through a grant from the Flight Attendant Medical Research Institute.

Ontario suing tobacco companies for $50B

Ontario is looking for $50 billion from a group of tobacco companies to recoup health-care costs linked to illnesses stemming from tobacco use.


Under the Tobacco Damages and Health Care Costs Recovery Act, which passed the provincial legislature this year, Ontario can file suits against companies seeking the recovery of tobacco-related damages.


The legislation impacts alleged damages from the past, as well as ongoing tobacco-related health issues.


Ontario Attorney General Chris Bentley told reporters Tuesday the government filed the suit in an attempt to reclaim the money dished out by taxpayers to fund the health-care system as it relates to ailments linked to smoking.


"The taxpayers of Ontario have paid a lot of money for health-care costs directly related to tobacco use over the decades," Bentley said, adding $50 billion is the estimated financial strain on the health system linked to smoking since 1955. "We have passed legislation that is consistent with legislation in other places and we believe the taxpayers should be compensated for the costs they have paid."


Although the new law allows government to move forward with the process, it is still required to prove its allegations — and cost estimates — in court.


Bentley played down questions about the government suing over tobacco use in Ontario when the province places hefty taxes on the products. "Even if we related the two, the amount paid out in health-care costs far exceeds the amount any government has collected for taxes," he said.


Acknowledging the length of time that may pass before results, Bentley said: "This is an important lawsuit . . . and we'll pursue it as expeditiously as we can and we'll pursue it to its conclusion."


Provincial NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said Tuesday the focus should remain firmly on reducing smoking, which would then filter down into less stress on the provincial health-care system.


"There's no doubt it will be an expensive undertaking and that it will take decades, likely, before it's resolved," Horwath told reporters. "That's why we're saying government should be doing something proactively . . . to help people quit smoking and to help young people to not start smoking in the first place."


Along with Ontario, six other provinces have taken steps to recover health costs from tobacco companies.


Meanwhile, the Saskatchewan government suggested Tuesday it might join Ontario's lawsuit.


Saskatchewan Health Minister Don McMorris said his government likely will decide in the next month whether to launch legal action.


"It is a huge deal," McMorris said of Ontario's decision.


"It is a huge case and the tobacco companies are well-defended and I think it would be very important that — if we decide to move forward — we move forward with a common voice with as many provinces as possible."


The previous NDP government in Saskatchewan passed enabling legislation that allows the province to sue tobacco companies. But Saskatchewan never launched a lawsuit because most large provinces — specifically Ontario — had shied away from legal action, making it too large a burden for Saskatchewan alone.


British Columbia introduced similar legislation in 2000, which was contested by Montreal-based Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd.


In 2005, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the B.C. law, allowing the province to seek health costs from tobacco companies dating back 50 years.


New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador and Manitoba have also enacted tobacco-cost recovery laws.


In May, a similar bill was tabled in Quebec, where a health department study estimated the health-care costs of smoking in the province at $4 billion a year.

Electronic cigarettes expected to grow in popularity under smoking ban

The clock is ticking for smoking establishments in Michigan. On May 1st the state will go smoke free, which means lighting up in your favorite bar or restaurant will be illegal.


But what about electronic cigarettes, will they be banned as well, and are there any harmful side effects?


Electronic cigarettes have been around for years, but are gaining exposure as more communities go smoke-free. The advantage for smokers is that they can still get a hit of nicotine, but without creating second-hand smoke.


Brandi Crawford has launched a business smell Greensmoke online from her Dowagiac home. The cigarette filters contain nicotine and water and are rechargeable. Instead of putting out smoke, they produce water vapor.


Crawford says she's expecting an increase of customers as Michigan's smoking ban takes effect.

 “Really popular in Florida, California, Chicago, where smoking ban has been in effect for years,” said Crawford.


While users of electronic cigarettes aren't inhaling smoke, it's the nicotine that still concerns doctors. 

Vicksburg family practitioner, Dr. Ken Franklin, warns that electronic cigarettes still aren't good for you.

“Most of the damage from cigarette smoke comes from cardiovascular disease, heart attack, stroke, high-blood pressure, birth defects, caused by nicotine itself,” said Dr. Franklin.

Reynolds' Ivey Made $16.2 Million in 2009

Reynolds American Inc. CEO Susan M. Ivey made $16.2 million last year, about 84 percent more than the previous year as the nation's second-biggest tobacco company struggled with declines in cigarette demand, according to a calculation by The Associated Press based on government filings.

Last year, the maker of Camel and Pall Mall cigarettes, and Kodiak and Grizzly smokeless tobacco saw its profit fall about 28 percent as revenue fell by 4.8 percent. The cigarette maker raised prices to offset sales volume declines it blamed on the economy and a 62-cents-per-pack federal tax increase that began in April.

For the year, Reynolds American said cigarette volumes fell 8.7 percent, while the company estimates an industry overall decline of 8.6 percent.

More than half of Ivey's pay package was accounted for in $8.5 million for a performance-based incentive bonus for 2009 and cash settlement of a 2007 long-term incentive plan. Her salary grew about 1 percent to $1.3 million.

The value of her stock options and stock awards nearly tripled to $6.2 million.


Ivey, who has headed the company since January 2004, was also given other compensation worth $198,217, which included a $79,000 payment given in place of the company's old executive perks program and personal flights on company-owned planes valued at about $11,500.

In 2008, Ivey's compensation was valued at $8.8 million.

Reynolds American also announced that it will hold its annual shareholders meeting on May 7 at its Winston-Salem, N.C., headquarters.

The Associated Press formula is designed to isolate the value the company's board placed on the executive's total compensation package during the last fiscal year.

It includes salary, bonus, performance-related bonuses, perks, above-market returns on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock options and awards granted during the year. The calculations don't include changes in the present value of pension benefits, making the AP total different in most cases than the total reported by companies to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Moldovan Communist Head Accuses Premier Of Cigarette Smuggling

The leader of Moldova's opposition Communist Party has accused Prime Minister Vlad Filat of smuggling cigarettes into neighboring Romania to pay for his election campaign last year, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports.

Former President Vladimir Voronin told a press conference in Chisinau that Filat's campaign funds were provided by Dinu Patriciu, a Romanian oil tycoon who is on this year's "Forbes" list of the world's wealthiest persons.

Voronin said Patriciu asked Filat last month to repay the money. He said Filat then prepared 10 truckloads of cigarettes to be sent to Romania. Voronin said only two trucks made it over the border while a third was stopped by Romanian customs officials. He did not say what happened to the other trucks.

Filat called Voronin's allegations "rubbish" and said he has no time to respond to such things.

Patriciu told the Romanian media that he has no ties whatsoever with Filat and did not finance his campaign.

Evans cigar shop owner blazing over possible cigarette tax increase

EVANS, Ga. - Smokers could cough up more to help ease Georgia and South Carolina's struggling budgets.Tuesday, opponents of Georgia's possible cigarette tax hike were at the state Capitol.

Although Georgia and South Carolina are among the cheapest when it comes to cigarettes, smokers and business owners say a tax increase is not what's needed to help with the budget shortfall.

Advocates of a new cigarette tax say an extra buck tacked on could raise as much as $354 million for the state of Georgia and decrease the number of smokers.

Russell Wilder with Top Shelf Cigar and Tobacco in Evans disagrees.

"They've realized over the years that they can keep raising the taxes and people will keep smoking," said Wilder.

Wilder says an extra dollar added to the price will do nothing but send customers over the river to shop.

"The potential there is I won't need to carry this anymore because people are taking the 15 minute drive over to North Augusta and buy their cigarettes there,” said Wilder.

That’s something Wilder says he can't afford.

"It's a small segment of what I sell but it's enough to pay my utilities. Now where am I going to make up that difference in sales,” asked Wilder.

We asked nonsmokers their opinion on the tax increase.

"That's fine with me because I don't smoke. It doesn't really matter," said one nonsmoker.

Although it matters to Wilder, he says if the tax goes into effect...

"We're 25 percent of the voting population so we can't vote anybody out. All we can do is be mad," said Wilder.

In South Carolina, School Superintendent Jim Rex wants the state's current 7 cent per pack tax raised to the national average.

He says the move would avoid teacher furloughs.