For months now, perhaps the biggest story in Atlantic City has been the battle between casino owners, their employees and state officials regarding indoor smoking, or more specifically, the potential closing of a legal loophole that exempts casinos from the state’s Smoke-Free Air Act.
The employees’ efforts, spearheaded by the organization Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE), have gained more momentum than ever, to the extent that a hearing on the matter was recently held in the state Assembly.
Over the course of the two-hour hearing, which was full of emotional testimony from members of CEASE and others, three more lawmakers agreed to co-sponsor the bill (Assembly Bill 2151), bringing the total to 84, which represents 70 percent of the state Legislature.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has repeatedly vowed to sign any non-smoking legislation that reaches his desk, but there’s still many hurdles to clear until that happens.
For starters, no vote was held at the hearing and no timetable was set to do so, despite the added support.
Additionally, the biggest argument against the proposed ban is the impact it may have on the city’s gaming-reliant economy. Throughout the entire process, casino owners and trade bodies in the area have pointed to projected revenue cuts and job losses that the smoking ban could result in.
At the recent hearing, Unite Here Local 54 union President Bob McDevitt testified that should the bill pass, “one casino will close.” McDevitt went on to add that he thinks “a 10 percent reduction in the gaming revenue in Atlantic City will result in, at least, a closure. And that will be between 2,500 and 3,000 people out of jobs,” as reported by NJBiz.com.
Despite these arguments against a smoking ban, CEASE announced that a large majority of legislators are sponsors of the bill.
“Three more New Jersey legislators are co-sponsoring legislation to close the casino smoking loophole, bringing the number of co-sponsors to 84— that’s 70 percent of all legislators in Trenton. The new co-sponsors are Assemblyman Alex Sauickie, Assemblywoman DeAnne DeFuccio, and Senator Douglas Steinhardt.
“Members of Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE) expressed their gratitude for the growing support of the legislation. “We thank Assemblyman Sauickie, Assemblywoman DeFuccio, and Senator Steinhardt for cosponsoring this bill,” said Pete Naccarelli, co-leader of CEASE. “Every new co-sponsor brings us one step closer to closing the casino smoking loophole and ensuring that we, as casino workers, can do our jobs knowing that our health won’t be put in danger.”
“With overwhelming support for the bill in both the New Jersey Senate and Assembly, it’s clear that the time has come to protect casino workers and end indoor smoking in casinos,” said Cynthia Hallett, president and CEO of Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights. “New Jersey lawmakers have heard time and again about the detrimental and life-threatening health implications of indoor smoking, and they should act quickly to pass this essential piece of legislation. It’s time to hold a vote.”
Meanwhile, across the country in Nevada, the industry always comes first, and by that reasoning, there is little confidence that an indoor smoking ban is coming anytime soon, despite the increased efforts in the second-largest gaming market in the U.S.
One of the biggest indications of this is the difference in employee feedback. Whereas New Jersey workers are more united than ever for a smoking ban, Nevada employees are a little more divided, at least according to Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for Culinary Local 226, one of the most influential unions in the state.
Pappageorge told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that based on member surveys from last year, only about 60 percent of Culinary members would support such a ban.
“We’re going to represent our members and what our members want,” he added. “That number is moving, of our members supporting a ban, but even amongst members it’s not an overwhelming support yet.”
Additionally, the fear of losing any gaming-related revenue is scarier in Nevada, whose gambling market is statewide, compared to New Jersey’s, which is enclosed to Atlantic City alone.
And perhaps the most difficult aspect of the entire issue is rifling through the morass of data from both sides—for example, a recent report commissioned by the Casino Association of New Jersey declared that smoking bans would result in massive revenue drops and job losses, but a separate study from Las Vegas-based C3 Gaming said otherwise, pointing out that Philadelphia’s Parx Casino remains Pennsylvania’s highest-grossing property despite going smoke-free in 2020.
In any case, the small number of Nevada casinos that have attempted smoke-free policies in the past have not exactly seen smashing results—ParkMGM stands out as the only current smoke-free Strip property, but MGM CEO Bill Hornbuckle has said repeatedly that that policy will not extend to other MGM casinos.
The Mirage, which was recently acquired by Hard Rock International, previously promoted a non-smoking area on its casino floor last month, but those signs and partitions have since been removed. The company declined to comment on the change.
Others are attempting new approaches, such as the Plaza in downtown Las Vegas. The property is partnering with slot machine social media influencer Brian Christopher to create a non-smoking area with a separate entrance and state-of-the-art slot and table games. The new zone is expected to debut in the coming months.
Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel told the Review-Journal that he feels this new approach may blaze a path for others.
“I think the problem with the way it’s been done so far in the industry is that most of these smoke-free areas have been sort of in the back, and they haven’t been nice and haven’t had the best product,” said Jossel. “We’re putting a lot of effort to make this a truly destination gaming area.”
Despite the excitement, however, the CEO still alluded to the elephant in the room—it will need to perform to stick around. “We’ll know in 12 months if it’s a worthwhile venture,” he cautioned.
