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We've almost reached the finish line, and now some people want us to start over.

These folks are the owners of bars and casinos who want to be exempted from the Montana Clean Indoor Air Act that was finalized more than three years ago. The law gave most businesses until Oct. 1, 2005, to prohibit indoor smoking, but allowed bars and casinos an extra four years to comply.

So it's not like they are being asked to quit cold turkey; in fact, many bars and casinos have used the time since the act was approved to gradually scale back the hours and areas where smoking is allowed. Hundreds of bars and gaming establishments in the state have already opted to completely prohibit smoking.

But about 1,400 others have asked to be exempted from the smoking ban - and now, Sen. Jerry Black of Shelby is working on a bill that would make their exemption permanent. He's doing so at the request of some local business owners, although even Black doesn't seem to think it has any chance of passing through the 2009 Legislature, since a sizable majority of Montanans support the Clean Indoor Air Act. In fact, a September telephone poll commissioned by several health advocacy groups found that nearly 80 percent of voters in the state approve of the act.

The bar and casino owners now balking at the law are framing their argument as a personal property issue, perhaps forgetting that we've heard this argument - and rejected it - before.

Those who choose to smoke still have plenty of places to do so - places where the repercussions of their personal choice are confined to themselves as individuals. Their right to smoke does not, however, allow them to put the health of others at risk.

We understand they are afraid of losing some customers once smoking at their establishments is no longer permitted, but would encourage them to take a look at some of the businesses that chose early compliance to gauge whether that fear is realistic. At this point, it would be terribly unfair to allow some bars and taverns to continue to allow their patrons to smoke while enforcing the ban for others.

Even the Montana Tavern Association and Gaming Industry Association of Montana are set to oppose Black's bill, recognizing that “the public has made its feelings about this issue very clear,” in the words of Montana Tavern Association lawyer and spokesman Mark Staples.

Montana's legislative leaders have already spent a lot of time debating and carefully weighing the effects of such a ban. Ultimately, they came up with an act that has received overwhelming public support. They do not need to waste any more of their time rehashing an old issue when there are so many other pressing matters vying for their attention.

The draft bill granting widespread exemptions to the Montana Clean Indoor Air Act sounds like bad legislation, and should be snuffed out right now.

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