Orange County NC Website
She said the Board of Health hopes to have a draft of the rule for public feedback by April, and <br />implementation would happen by the fall. <br />“The county’s process to draft (the) policy will offer an opportunity to educate the public about the <br />hazards and benefits of e-cigarettes for users and others nearby,” Hemminger said. <br />Hemminger said she anticipates people with strong opinions on both sides of the e-cigarette discussion. <br /> Town council member George Cianciolo said he does not anticipate a lot of opposition to the potential <br />policy. <br />“(For) restaurants that are currently banning regular cigarettes, (I) don’t think they will have a problem <br />with e-cigarettes,” Cianciolo said. <br />Cianciolo also said there is often no information as to what else is in the solution that generates the <br />vapor that e-cigarettes produce. <br />“It’s a good step forward, and from my perspective as a scientist, it’s a good step forward by the health <br />department,” Cianciolo said. <br />Cianciolo said he is concerned about issues of enforceability once the policy is implemented. He said, <br />generally, where Chapel Hill has had the biggest problem with smoking ordinances is people <br />complaining about others smoking at public places, like bus stops. <br />“You can pass laws, but enforcement of some are more difficult,” Cianciolo said. “We don’t have enough <br />folks to enforce (all of them).” <br />Cianciolo said the county and Town Council would need to see if there are different problems with <br />enforcing an e-cigarette policy as opposed to a regular cigarette policy. <br />Town council member Jessica Anderson is also concerned about the enforceability of the potential <br />policy for bars and restaurants. <br />“It’s on the business owner to enforce it, which is always hard,” she said. “It sounds like (the county is) <br />going to have to take that into account.” <br /> Michael Schillinger, a bartender at Linda’s Bar and Grill in Chapel Hill, said he is not concerned that this <br />policy would affect business. <br />“Most people that come in here end up going outside to smoke real cigarettes,” Schillinger said. <br />He also said he has occasionally seen customers smoke e-cigarettes inside the bar, but no one seemed <br />to mind. <br />Similarly, Justin Dreaver, manager of Hickory Tavern in Carrboro, said he does not anticipate many <br />problems that may come with a new e-cigarette policy.