Blackfeet tribal casino goes smoke free

GREAT FALLS — Blackfeet tribal officials want to make sure the tribe's indoor smoking ban is enforced at a tribally owned casino.

The Great Falls Tribune reports the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council voted 5-4 Monday to ban smoking in the Glacier Peaks Casino.

The Blackfeet Tobacco Free Act of 2005 bans smoking in enclosed public places. Casinos were exempted until September 2007.

However, a local tobacco initiative group told the council that the ban wasn't being enforced at the casino. Tribal Chairman Willie A. Sharp Jr. wrote to casino managers, reminding them of the regulations.

Casino representatives proposed that a third of the casino be smoke free instead, but that proposal was voted down Monday.

Sharp says the health hazards of secondhand smoke are at the root of the council's decision.