We all know about do-nothing government officials. At the St. Louis County Board, it's the "do something" that's the problem.
Last March, amid the ongoing drone of whether to enact a controversial smoking ban in the county, Commissioner Keith Nelson said if the Legislature didn't act on a statewide ban, the County Board would "do something in St. Louis County."
To the surprise of no one, the Legislature ended its session without acting on the measure.
And as of this week, neither has the St. Louis County Board. On Tuesday, commissioners failed to take up the matter, despite calls for public hearings on a countywide ban from Duluth Commissioner Steve O'Neil and from others. Nelson claimed: "We had an agreement that we would not bring this forward at the County Board level."
Then what did "do something in St. Louis County" mean? Board Chairman Nelson says now that he'd prefer a regional ban or statewide ban to a countywide ban.
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A statewide ban would be preferred to smoking laws that change at every city or county border. But how long do commissioners plan to wait for the Legislature to act, which for years has failed to do so on the issue?
As for a regional ban, just how big might that region be?
St. Louis County commissioners had been considering a smoking ban modeled after the reasonable approach approved by Duluth voters in 2001. The Duluth ban prohibits smoking in public places such as restaurants, hotel lobbies and businesses. It excludes bars and private clubs. Outdoor public areas also are exempt. However, in the summer of 2003, city leaders put up signs declaring 57 parks and recreation areas "tobacco-free zones." The signs reflected a city rule rather than a city law, but they've proven effective -- certainly more effective than just blowing smoke at the issue.
"We are the public health authority," O'Neil said yesterday of the county. "Public health is our responsibility."
County leaders could prove that to be true by deciding once and for all: Yes or no? Smoking ban or no smoking ban?
