Not just when children are in the car, either. Two, I'm sorry to say, Democrats, have
proposed a measure that would ban smoking in cars. Offenders would be hit with a $250 fine.
Assemblyman John McKeon, a tobacco opponent whose father died of emphysema, sponsored the legislation. He cites a AAA-sponsored study on driver distractions in which the automobile association found that of 32,000 accidents linked to distraction, 1 percent were related to smoking.
The measure, co-sponsored by Assemblywoman Lorretta Weinberg, a fellow Democrat, was introduced last month just before lawmakers' summer break. It faces some improbable odds for passing.
Some lawmakers may fear the bill is frivolous compared with more pressing issues like taxes, said political analyst David Rebovich."
And there's this to consider: Traffic safety groups acknowledge motorists now widely ignore the state's year-old law against using hand-held cell phones, so why would smoking be any different?
Mitchell Sklar, of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, said police departments may balk at enforcing such a law. "In general, we'd rather not try to incrementally look at every single behavior and make those a violation," he said.
Assemblyman John McKeon can be reached at (973)-275-1113.
Assemblywoman Loretta Weinberg can be reached at (201)-928-0100. The intern who answered her phone was very nice, although he professionally sidestepped when I asked him if he agreed to the frivolity of it all.
New Jersey has the highest property taxes in the nation. I pay about $5,000 a year, and I'm getting off easy.
I've been lurking since the election, and this is my first diary ever. Please be gentle.