SAN FRANCISCO, April 21, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today
the San Francisco Board of
Supervisors unanimously passed an ordinance to prohibit use of all
tobacco products – including smokeless tobacco – at all baseball
venues and athletic fields within the city and county of
San Francisco, including by fans
and players at AT&T Park. San
Francisco is the first jurisdiction in the nation to approve
such a measure. The Board of Supervisors is expected to take a
final vote on the ordinance on April
28 before it goes to Mayor Ed
Lee for his signature. It would take effect January 1, 2016.
The following is a Statement by Matthew L. Myers, President, Campaign for
Tobacco-Free Kids
"Today's vote by the San
Francisco Board of Supervisors is truly historic and a huge
step toward eliminating tobacco from baseball for good.
San Francisco will become the
first city to take tobacco out of baseball, setting a powerful
example that all of Major League Baseball and the rest of the
country should quickly follow. The Board of Supervisors recognizes
some simple but important facts – kids see athletes as role models,
and when baseball stars use smokeless tobacco the kids who look up
to them are much more likely to as well. Our national pastime
should have nothing to do with promoting a deadly and addictive
product.
Supervisor Mark Farrell has been
a true champion on this issue, putting the health of San Francisco's kids first. San Francisco is leading the nation on this
important issue and helping us achieve our goal of the first
tobacco-free generation.
When Mayor Lee signs the ordinance into law, we will be on our
way to making Major League Baseball completely tobacco-free by
2016. We applaud San Francisco for
acting to break baseball's unhealthy addiction to tobacco and
moving us closer to taking tobacco out of baseball once and for all
– for the kids, the players and the future."
Public health groups launched the "Knock Tobacco Out of the
Park" campaign earlier this year to promote tobacco-free baseball
and provide visibility to the issue of smokeless tobacco in
baseball. More information can be found at
tobaccofreebaseball.org.
Logo -
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080918/CFTFKLOGO
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/in-historic-first-san-francisco-board-of-supervisors-votes-to-take-tobacco-out-of-baseball-300069877.html
SOURCE Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids