PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- A bill to ban smoking in bars, video lottery casinos and Deadwood gambling halls passed the South Dakota Senate by a 21-14 margin Wednesday.
The measure, which would leave only motel rooms, cigar bars and smoke shops as public places open to smoking in South Dakota, must go back to the House because of a Senate amendment. Sponsors of the ban said they'll ask the House to accept that change and send the bill to the governor.
The Senate vote on HB1240 showed four more votes than anti-tobacco forces could muster on a similar measure earlier in the session. That measure failed by a single vote.
The bill approved Wednesday would broaden a 7-year-old smoking ban that covers most public workplaces but that exempts video lottery casinos, Deadwood gambling halls and bars.
Debate ran for more than 90 minutes in the Senate, with supporters of the ban arguing that secondhand smoke is a serious health hazard and opponents countering that business owners should have the right to decide whether to adopt smoke-free policies or not.
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"This is a bill that will focus on appropriate public health regulations," Sen. Dave Knudson, R-Sioux Falls, said.
"We're talking about a legal product that is grown in the United States of America, subsidized by the federal government, and now we want to ban it," Sen. Gene Abdallah, R-Sioux Falls, said.
"You aren't allowed to dump your garbage on my lawn," Sen. Nancy Turbak Berry, D-Watertown, said. "Why should your be able to deposit your garbage in my lungs?"
Sen. Gordon Howie, R-Rapid City, asked, "How can we assure that the next step will not be to take away the right to use this legal products in the home?"
Abdallah also said that in the seven years since the existing smoking ban took effect, South Dakota hasn't witnessed a single prosecution for a violation of the law.
Supporters of the bill fought back several attempts to weaken the ban, killing separate proposed amendments to exempt Deadwood gambling, to allow smoking in video lottery businesses that were walled off from bars or restaurants and to allow smoking in bars where customers had to be at least 21 years old and where food wasn't served.
The one amendment that passed came from Sen. Frank Kloucek, D-Scotland.
