Moose Lodges to become tobacco-free by Jan. 1, 2020

MOOSEHEART – All Moose lodge facilities – including those in St. Charles and Batavia – will become tobacco-free Jan. 1, 2020, following a vote by the fraternity’s leadership, officials announced in a news release.

The ban includes cigarettes and cigars as well as smokeless tobacco and vaping products.

Lodges can have a separate facility such as a deck or room unattached to the lodge where smokers can go, but the interior of all lodges must be tobacco-free, the release stated.

“It’s a major step for our fraternity,” Moose International CEO/Director General Scott Hart stated in the release. “There’s been a lot of talk in the last two decades about this. It’s time to put that behind us and have our vision moving forward as we address our primary missions, the care for the children at Mooseheart and seniors at Moosehaven.”

In a 77% margin, Loyal Order of Moose delegates voted at its recent international convention in Las Vegas to make all its lodges smoke-free.

The support met the two-thirds majority needed to change the organization’s general laws, the release stated.

Support for the ban was universal from Moose corporate leadership, including Hart, the board of officers, the Women of the Moose and its Grand Council, the release stated.

“It was essential that we go smoke-free,” Supreme Councilman Bruce Berger stated in the release.

“It not only opens up a whole new pool of prospective members from young and old alike, it will also help get families with children or grandchildren to become members,” Berger stated in the release. “We are confident that members who have stayed away from our facilities due to smoke will now feel better about spending more time inside the lodges.”

Statistics from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show a decline in smoking in the overall population, decade by decade.

The rate of smoking among younger generations is even lower. Both these figures helped delegates make the decision on the smoking ban.
 
"We hear complaints all the time about members having to remove smoke-infested clothes before entering their home after a visit to the lodge," Supreme Governor Rodney Hammond stated in the release.

Prior to the vote in Las Vegas, many lodges voluntarily moved to ban tobacco products, acknowledging the trends and costs associated with smoking.

Additionally, many states have passed tobacco bans that covered Moose lodges as well. Moose leadership’s view was that as a family-based organization, a fraternity-wide ban was necessary.

“This does put the onus on Moose International in that it looks like the decision is coming down ‘from above.’ But it’s something that we needed to do for the health of our membership and for the health of our fraternity,” Hart stated in the release.

For the past six years, the Moose has offered lodges help with expenses through its Supreme Council Lodge Grant Program, which has been funded at $1 million per year.

Lodges can apply for grants to do improvements. This year, improvements can also include alterations and remodeling expenses associated with eliminating lingering smoke damage, as well as accommodations for smokers in outdoor facilities.

“We want to respect the right for people who want to smoke,” Hart stated in the release. “But we want that to be in an area of the lodge property that is designated for smoking in a way that also respects family members.”