Businesses fighting smoking ban

| 29 Sep 2011 | 08:26

    The New Jersey Smoke-free Air Act, which prohibits smoking in restaurants, bars, private office buildings and other indoor places, is being fought in court by hospitality industry leaders. On April 13 — two days before it takes effect — a federal judge in Trenton will hear arguments on their request to postpone its implementation until their lawsuit challenging a casino exemption is heard. In the meantime, bar and restaurant owners are awaiting the state’s publication of rules that spell out the specifics of the ban and its enforcement. ``What I hear is a lot of questions,’’ said Deborah Dowdell, executive director of the New Jersey Restaurant Association, one of the groups challenging the ban in court. The lack of rules has left ``thousands of small businesses that don’t know what to do.’’