A proposal to ban smoking in

public places got nowhere fast during last week's Fayette County

Commission meeting.

"We're being compared to California and Massachusetts, which

are two places I don't want to be compared to," said Commissioner

Peter Pfeifer.

Last month, the Fayette County Board of Health created a resolution asking

all of the county's governments to prohibit smoking in public buildings

because of health concerns.

The commission made it clear they had no plans to vote on the issue until

far more information was gathered.

"This is a very difficult process for me. Do you tell somebody who

owns a business that they can't allow smoking? This is still America,"

said Commissioner Greg Dunn.

Commissioner A.G. VanLandingham, who is the board's representative

on the Board of Health, said the group was only looking to try and preserve

the health of the county's residents. VanLandingham agreed the issue

needed further study, but said the health board did want a complete ban

on indoor smoking.

"If we're going to do something, it ought to be whole hog,"

he said.

The commission did not indicate when a vote on the issue might occur.