OU President David Boren’s hopes for designated smoking areas on the Norman campus were extinguished Monday by an executive order from Gov. Mary Fallin.
By putting her signature to Executive Order 2012-01, Fallin banned the use of all tobacco products on “all properties owned, leased or contracted” by the State of Oklahoma, including all buildings, land and vehicles owned, according to the executive order.
UPDATE: OU tobacco ban
BACKGROUND: The OU Board of Regents approved a tobacco ban that limited tobacco use to two designated smoking areas on campus.
WHAT'S NEW: Gov. Mary Fallin signed an executive order banning tobacco use on all state-owned and state-leased property. This order supersedes OU’s decision.
WHAT'S NEXT: OU must submit an amended policy to the OU Board of Regents that won’t feature designated smoking areas. The university can’t allow the smoking areas due to Fallin’s decision.
All OU campuses will be expected to comply with the ban, which will force OU administrators to draft a new smoking policy before the OU Board of Regents hold their next meetings March 28 and 29 in Norman.
When the revised ban is presented to the Regents, it will be the second time in as many meetings that a tobacco ban has been addressed.
The regents voted unanimously Jan. 25 at the OU Health Sciences Center to adopt a ban which allowed two designated smoking areas on campus.
With the passage of Fallin’s order, all OU campuses, which fall under the heading of state-owned or state-leased property, can no longer provide the designated smoking areas.
The areas were set to be placed at Lloyd Noble Center and part of the Dale Hall parking lot, according to tobacco ban policy adopted in January.
OU will submit a tobacco policy to the OU Board of Regents that is in line with Fallin’s decision, OU spokeswoman Catherine Bishop said in an email.
When the revised policy is submitted, the change in policy regarding the university’s designated smoking areas will be the only major revision, Gary Raskob said in an email. Raskob is the College of Public Health dean and the former chairman of the university’s advisory tobacco committee formed to help craft the initial policy.
The rest of the policy already approved by the Regents is in line with Fallin’s order, Raskob said.
Fallin has given every state-owned and state-leased property until July 1 before the tobacco ban will go into effect. This is the same time OU’s original tobacco ban would have been enforced.
A new policy will be drafted and submitted to the OU Board of Regents, OU spokesman Michael Nash said.
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BoomerSooner25 3 months, 1 week ago
Good
plaws 3 months, 1 week ago
Good, yes, but is this a TOBACCO policy or a SMOKING policy? The article uses the two interchangeably when they are not interchangeable. Smoking offends me and interferes with my health; chewing tobacco offends me but does not, to my knowledge, affect my health ... no matter how gross and disgusting it is.
So which is it? Is all tobacco banned? Seems like it is but the article isn't definitive.
Tank 3 months, 1 week ago
I believe the executive order signed by Mary Fallin is a ban on all tobacco products.
Chaseacook 3 months, 1 week ago
Author of the story here. I'm also the managing editor of The Oklahoma Daily, just for transparency's sake.
Plaws: That's a great question. OU's policy -- like Gov. Mary Fallin's -- was a ban on ALL tobacco products. However, the university created designated smoking areas and called them such. I will double check the smoking areas listed in the regents agenda and make sure the article is clarified if the smoking areas stated chewing tobacco and other tobacco-related products could be used there as well.
Even then, the final ruling is that all tobacco will be banned on campus and there will be no place to smoke or chew or use any other tobacco affiliated product due to this executive order.
Thanks for your comments!
Nolan_Kraszkiewicz 3 months, 1 week ago
Crap, looks like I actually agree with this moron of a governor we have.
ohyou9033 3 months, 1 week ago
Plaws- wow, did you miss that day in middle school health class? Smokeless tobacco absolutely threatens your health!
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Tobacco/smokeless
Tank 3 months, 1 week ago
ohyou, I think Plaws was referring to someone else chewing tobacco affecting his/her health. As in, second-hand snuff.
smartin1955 3 months, 1 week ago
I note the Governor is not banning the selling of tobacco in Oklahoma. What a hypocrite! The State is addicted to tobacco, and does NOT want people to stop buying it OR using it! She is just another nanny wanting to punish the users of the product. And she wants to make property owners her personal, FREE, tobacco control police.
I think the people should look up her campaign donations from Johnson and Johnson, (Nicoderm, NIcorette, NIcotrol, Nicoderm CQ) and the States' receiving and using grant funds to lobby for bans. Too bad the tax payers are getting robbed to fund this nonsense!