It looks like Spain is serious about keeping their New Year’s Resolution—no more smoking. Well, at least in tapas, restaurants, casinos, airports and other public spaces. There had been softer restrictions put in place a few years ago, giving restaurant owners a choice on whether or not to allow smoking, but that—and all the smoke—has gone out the window.

The ban was largely influenced by a government report that stated as many as 50,000 people die each year in Spain due to smoke-related deaths, 1,200 of those from secondhand smoke.
Violators of the new ban will be fined 30 euros ($40 U.S.) for first time offenses and up to 100,000 euros ($133,000 U.S.) after your third strike. And though we’ve seen restaurants in the U.S. foot the bill so their customers can enjoy a smoke—we doubt they will in Spain—being fined anywhere between 60–100,000 euros per violation.

Many restaurant owners aren’t happy, feeling this will make a bad economy worse; they expect a 10% drop in business, as well as thousands of workers being laid off. Some owners are petitioning in hopes the ban will be lifted, allowing a cultural tradition to remain. Others aren’t as worried after seeing similar bans in other European countries such as France and Italy without any long-term damage.

Even though 70% of Spain’s population doesn’t smoke, they are the world’s largest consumer of Cuban cigars.

“With the onslaught of anti-tobacco ordinances and legislation, the coalition of traditional competitors are coming together to combat further intrusion into their businesses, to oppose measures that can impact the product choices of their patrons, to address the cost of both doing business in New York, and the cost of goods to their customers,” says  The Cigar Rights of America,

So what kind of hurdles have been put in their path? In New York City, for example, Council passed legislation back in October 2009 that put a ban on the sale of flavored tobacco, including cigars. Also last year, Council considered the idea of  an outdoor smoking ban at city parks and beaches, and “recently forced retailers in the city to display graphic images warning about tobacco use,” according to Cigar Aficionado.

What are your thoughts? How friendly do you think the state of New York is to cigar smokers and businesses?

Based in Fairfax, Virginia, the CRA was formed to keep tabs on the anti-smoking movement, and to organize an ANTI-anti-smoking movement. In other words, the CRA “is a consumer-based, non-profit public advocacy organization that works at the local, state, and federal level of government to protect the freedoms of cigar enthusiasts, says their website. Their two-pronged mission involves opposing cigar taxes as well as “restrictive” smoking bans.

If you’re willing to show support for the CRA, you can buy a “I’m with CRA and I VOTE” t-shirt among other schwag, or you can join as a member. Doing so gets you a number of benefits, including invitations to CRA “Member-Only” events, the CRA newsletter and email news alerts, and two premium cigars. Now that’s the best kind of “thanks for joining our organization” benefit you can receive!

The CRA has professional lobbyists in the trenches battling for your rights, and with 48 states that have cigar tax legislation in effect, it looks like they have their work cut out for them.