Fire-safe Cigarettes Required in Mass.
Lawmakers, fire officials, advocates and victims’ families celebrated the passage of the Fire-Safe Cigarettes Bill on July 8. Gov. Romney signed the bill into law, making Massachusetts the sixth state in the country to require tobacco companies to sell only self-extinguishing cigarettes.

Cigarette-ignited fires are the leading cause of home fire deaths in Massachusetts and nationwide, killing 700 to 900 Americans each year according to the National Fire Protection Association.

On average, cigarettes cause 1,300 fires in Massachusetts each year.

“Smoldering cigarettes are killers,” said MASSPIRG Consumer Advocate Eric Bourassa. “So it’s with great satisfaction that we celebrate the passage of a bill that will hold the tobacco industry more accountable, requiring them to make cigarettes that are less likely to start a fire.”

The bill faced a series of challenges as amendments from the House and Senate allowed numerous exemptions. The Senate then dramatically weakened the bill, adding exemptions for bars, private clubs, bingo and dog tracks.

It took a conference committee composed of three members from each house to bring the bill back to its full level of protection.

Colorado joins 13 other states and the District of Columbia in passing strong workplace smoking laws.
“This is a major victory,” said Rex Wilmouth, director of CoPIRG. “It’s a big day for the people of Colorado, given that 80 percent of the population does not smoke. Now everyone can go in bars and restaurants without worrying about second-hand smoke.”

Court Strikes Down Wash. Hanford Initiative
On June 12, a federal court struck down an initiative passed in 2004 to keep additional nuclear waste out of the storage facility in Hanford, Washington.

WashPIRG was one of the major backers of the original initiative, which would have prevented any new waste from being dumped at Hanford until and unless the facility meets environmental standards.

“The courts sided with the Bush administration officials who are dragging their feet on dealing with Hanford instead of with the wishes of Washington voters,” said Rob Sargent of WashPIRG.

“This ruling means that officials can’t hold Bechtel and other contractors accountable for protecting our health from pollution seeping from what is considered to be the most contaminated site in North America.”

The federal Department of Energy continues to push to make Hanford a national radioactive waste dump, and WashPIRG will continue to advocate forms of energy without radioactive waste products.

LANDMARK GLOBAL WARMING BILL­—Environment California’s Bernadette Del Chiaro stands with coalition partners to deliver petitions gathered in support of global warming legislation that will cap global warming pollution at the state level.

Landmark Global Warming Bill In Calif.
On August 30, the leadership of the California Legislature and Gov. Schwarzenegger announced an agreement on California’s historic Global Warming Bill, AB 32.

The bill will reduce global warming pollution to 1990 levels by 2020 and make California a world leader in stopping global warming pollution.

Our allies at Environment California worked with the governor and Legislature to craft strong legislation that could serve as a model for the rest of the country on how to reduce global warming pollution in the absence of strong federal laws.