Macon Mayor Robert Reichert has vetoed a city anti-smoking ordinance passed by the city council last week. The rules would ban smoking in most Macon public buildings, including bars and restaurants. But in a statement released Thursday afternoon, Reichert said the rules are too broad — banning smoking in public parks and other outdoor spaces — and that opponents didn’t get enough chance to speak out.

Navajo President Ben Shelly says he’s concerned about second-hand smoke on the vast reservation and has signed an executive order banning commercial tobacco in public places.A spokeswoman for Shelly says the order won’t go into effect without approval from the tribe’s attorney general.If enforced as written, smoking would be prohibited in public places that include tribal casinos, tribal government work vehicles and hotels. It also wouldn’t be allowed within 25 feet of a public building or work place.

Bar employees are breathing easier since Michigan banned smoking in restaurants and bars nearly a year ago, according to a study reported by the American Cancer Society’s Great Lakes Division.The Michigan Department of Community Health conducted a study involving 40 people working at bars throughout the state before and after the Smokefree Air Law took effect May 1, 2010.

Latest results show that nearly 400,000 women compared to 200,000 men made a quit attempt on the UK’s biggest stop smoking awareness campaign, this year asking smokers ‘Is it your time to quit?’. In addition, almost 2 million (20%) adult smokers made a positive step towards quitting on the Day, by planning their quit journey, looking for information on quitting, smoking less than usual, taking part in a No Smoking Day event or using the charity’s dedicated website for quitters - http://www.WeQuit.co.uk

A 51-year-old Winter Springs man faces charges after police said he walked off with several cartons of cigarettes from stores while leaving a partner behind to pay with a over-the-limit credit card.Wade Edward Carter was charged with two counts of retail theft after Palm Bay police linked him to two Friday morning walk-off thefts at the 7-11 store, 800 Palm Bay Road and Walgreen’s, 1160 Malabar Road.

A quadriplegic man was killed Wednesday when an explosion and fire occurred in his Pacific Beach apartment after he lit a cigarette while using oxygen, San Diego fire officials said.The fire was reported at 1:53 p.m. in the ground-floor unit of the two-story building on Diamond Street near Noyes Street, said Maurice Luque, the San Diego fire-rescue spokesman.Although a quadriplegic, the man had some use of his hands and was a chronic smoker, Luque said.

A few weeks ago, I received a message in my campus email from the anti-smoking group Spark, which describes itself as a group of young adults who wish to spread truth and common sense to the masses.Generally, that is a mission statement I can support with great pride and vigor. It is not always how the sandwich looks, but also how it tastes that makes a difference.

The Niagara County Health Department announced Tuesday that four convenience stores, two each in Niagara Falls and Youngstown, were penalized for selling tobacco products to minors during compliance checks between Oct. 1 and March 31.Both Youngstown stores were repeat offenders: The Market Place, 200 Lockport St., was a second-time violator and Main Street Gas&Grille, 311 Main St., was a third-time offender.