Film industry concerns delay NC smoking ban debate

[The Straight Story]

Film industry concerns delay NC smoking ban debate
By GARY D. ROBERTSON , 04.23.09, 11:50 AM EDT
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Camera! Action! But no lights?

Debate on a bill to ban smoking at many work places in North Carolina was delayed in the Senate Health Care Committee on Wednesday because the motion picture industry worries the bill would prevent actors from smoking on screen.

The bill, which cleared the House three weeks ago, could bar smoking at many work sites, including film lots, the industry says.

Sen. Bill Purcell, D-Scotland, the committee's co-chairman, said he wanted to give the movie industry in Wilmington sufficient time to propose an amendment. The bill will be considered next week, he said.

The state is among the nation's leaders in generating film revenues. Movies, such as George Clooney's "Leatherheads" and Will Ferrell's "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby," and television series "Dawson's Creek" and "One Tree Hill" have been filmed in the state.

"This is a big issue with the movie makers in North Carolina," said Purcell. "The film industry is a very important industry to North Carolina."

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/04/23/ap6329753.html