Written by Amber Emery and Ryan Tarinelli
A University of Idaho task force is already working to implement a tobacco-free policy by 2015 even though UI General Counsel Kent Nelson said the task force is not working under any kind of official approval.
Philip Vukelich | Argonaut
Economics Club president Joseph Cook, right, Economics Club adviser Steven Peterson, center, and senior Erin Phipps post informational fliers in opposition of the potential tobacco ban policy on the University of Idaho campus Thursday, in the Albertson Building.
Vandal Health Education Coordinator Emily Tuschhoff said the Tobacco Task Force is working under the authority of intention language supported by Faculty Senate and endorsed by an 85-70 vote at the all-faculty meeting in April.
But, according to Nelson, the intention clause has not yet been adopted into the Administrative Procedures Manual (APM). Nelson said the procedure to change the smoking policy would require additional time and adequate vetting.
“It has not yet been formally approved,” he said. “They should be exploring how implementation will take place because that is a time consuming process and also one that needs significant vetting, I would suspect.”
Tuschhoff said the task force is beginning the implementation and planning phase early to meet the Aug. 24 date outlined in the proposed policy.
Although there is no policy or statement of intent in place, Marty Ytreberg, UI Faculty Senate chair, said it’s fair for the task force to move forward with the implementation phase as they have received significant support from UI administrators. Ytreberg said the faculty narrowly agreed it should be the intention of the university to move toward a tobacco free campus.
Under the current policy, tobacco use is permitted 25 feet away from UI buildings.
Nelson said the task force seeks to change the policy to prohibit all forms of tobacco on the UI campus effective Aug. 24, 2015. The proposed policy would forbid the use of cigarettes, chewing tobacco, e-cigarettes, cigars and hookahs, among other tobacco products.
“We’re doing this to protect the health and safety of the students,” said Helen Brown, a member of the task force and a professor in the Department of Movement Sciences. “I think that really fuels our desire to continue this work.”
While Nelson said there is a procedure for changes and amendments to the APM, the university’s smoking policy is a “special case” in that it’s almost exclusively under the discretion of UI President Chuck Staben.
“The smoking policy sits with this president because of the significance of it,” Nelson said. “But, not all APM policies have to go through the president.”
Nelson said the task force’s tobacco-free campus proposal, if not for its campus-wide implications and controversy, would ordinarily go through the standard amendment process for the APM.
In that case, he said the task force would have had to introduce the proposed language to the administrative entity tasked with the enforcement UI’s smoking policy, the Office of Environmental Health and Safety. Then, Nelson said Vice President of Finance and Administration Ron Smith, the administrator to whom EHS reports, would have had to approve the change.
“Depending upon the nature of the change it could be approved at that level,” he said. “If approved at Ron’s level it would go to Faculty Senate as an advisory matter, they would be being told that this change is in the offering, and they would have input.”
Philip Vukelich | Argonaut
Yet, Nelson said the Tobacco Task Force’s proposed tobacco ban is not subject to this process.
Nelson said because the task force stemmed from student services and a student-led class project in the Department of Movement Sciences, the proposal can be treated a little differently than most proposed changes to the APM.
“It also had support from the Faculty Senate leadership last year, significantly (Patricia) Hartzell,” he said. “She truly is an advocate for it, so I think that helped bump it up to the presidential level quite quickly.”
Nelson said although the decision as to whether UI will become a tobacco-free campus or not lies in the hands of the president, the decision is not an individual one.
“There is an expectation that stakeholders will have the opportunity for input and that is one of the discussions that the president will want to have with this task force,” Nelson said. “For this sort of a policy, it’s pretty difficult to identify somebody who’s not really a stakeholder.”
Ytreberg said Staben met with the task force Monday to receive an update on its efforts. Nelson said he suspects Staben wants to learn more about the efforts being made to include facets of the university community that don’t necessarily agree with the proposed policy.
“I think the president is looking seriously at levels of vetting,” Nelson said. “Clearly, it’s important that there be a good representation of the stakeholders as much in the implementation as the initial identification of the policy idea of tobacco-free.”
Amber Emery and Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]