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Ban continues to divide people  

Residents across the state came together via the Iowa Communications Network Wednesday morning to express their passion for either side during a hearing hosted by the Iowa Department of Public Health, which is responsible for enforcing the ban.

Even though the bill passed the Iowa Legislature, was signed by Gov. Chet Culver and was enacted on July 1, those in attendance at the meeting mostly fought over the language in the bill rather than discussing the law's rules, which was the reason for the meeting.

"(One attendee) said, 'The place to rehash this bill is the election booth,' " state Sen. Tom Courtney, D-Burlington, said after the meeting. "He's exactly right."

Courtney, who attended the meeting and sits on the Administrative Rules Review Committee, said he hoped the discussion would have focused more on the area where he feels the rules did go beyond the law's intention: banning smoking on bar decks or patios.

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