UI President Chuck Staben began discussing tobacco with a group of students in 2012 who wanted to pursue a tobacco-free policy at the university.
They proposed a plan to ASUI and in the spring of 2013, ASUI passed a resolution to review tobacco policy, Staben said.
Former ASUI President Max Cowan said a group called the Tobacco Task Force was appointed by Interim UI President Don Burnett to gather data and opinions about pursuing a revised tobacco policy. He said a draft of the tobacco-free policy came to the Faculty Senate twice to receive revisions.
During this time, Cowan said open forums, debates and many opportunities for input were provided for students, faculty and staff. He said ASUI commissioned a statistically sound poll in the fall of 2014, which found 62 percent of students favored a smoke-free policy, while 51 percent favored a completely tobacco-free policy.
In the fall of 2015, Staben tasked Cowan and a committee to write an implementation policy. Staben signed the policy in spring of 2016 and it went into effect July 1, as is customary of administrative procedures.
Cowan said there is a vocal minority of people who criticized the process and said there were not enough opportunities for their voices to be heard. He said these people were often displeased, not with the process, but with its outcome.
Staben said this process was the most appropriate way to implement the policy. He said alternatives included going through the State Board of Education or through Faculty Senate. He said he felt comfortable moving forward with the administrative procedure because so many stakeholders had already voiced their opinions.
“It had been widely discussed on campus really by three different committees of people,” Staben said. “We thought there was significant buy-in and we were really comfortable moving ahead with it.”
Economics faculty member Steven Peterson did not buy into the policy. He is a member of a group called the Idaho Tobacco Compromise that opposed a full smoking or tobacco ban at UI.
He said the group made three main points. The first of which is that after looking at the research, they found that outside incidental second-hand smoke does not constitute a health risk. He said the second is that the policy will infringe on personal liberties.
“And three, is it ultimately will not be effective in reducing tobacco use,” Peterson said. “When you put it underground, it has the unintended consequences of intensifying heavy use while discouraging the occasional users.”
Peterson said the group would have liked to see a policy that included designated smoking areas, which he said would allow space for personal liberties in addition to discouraging smoking.
“Watching somebody freeze and smoke a cigarette outside is not going to encourage the behavior, just the opposite,” Peterson said.
Staben said he thinks the policy will have a relatively small, but positive effect on the university.
“I think there is a benefit to encouraging smoking cessation,” Staben said. “And I think it basically is consistent with the image we have as an educational institution that promotes good health and wellness.”
Jack Olson can be reached at