Wisconsin May Open Doors To New Cigar Bars
Wisconsin could become the newest location to ease up on its smoking ban, clearing the way for new cigar bars to open. In 2009, Wisconsin was one of many state or local governments across the country to implement stringent smoke-free laws that effectively banned indoor smoking. The legislation allowed cigar bars that had been in place before 2009 to remain open, but it made it illegal to add any new ones. A current proposal, Assembly Bill 211 (AB211), aims to change that, adding an exemption that would allow more cigar bars to open in the Badger State.
This kind of fight is being played out across the United States at various levels of government, and it has been for some time. A few legislative bodies recently passed identical bills, such as in Louisville, Kentucky and the state of Connecticut. Montana currently has a similar bill working its way through the state governing body. And many others, just like Wisconsin, are gearing up to reintroduce bills that previously failed, with hopes of a better outcome.
The situation in Wisconsin is unusual, as the state has uncommon limits on indoor smoking. The only places in the entire state where you can legally smoke indoors are those licensed as “tobacco bars,” defined as a tavern that gets at least 15 percent of its sales from cigars and pipe tobacco. The keyword here is “tavern,” because that designation requires a liquor license, specifically a Class B liquor license or a Class B fermented malt beverages license. So in order to allow indoor smoking in Wisconsin you also need to have a license to serve alcohol, a provision that excludes most traditional cigar shops. You can still open a retail cigar shop in Wisconsin, but if you don’t have a liquor license (which you need for a tobacco bar license) your clients cannot smoke inside the store. That won’t change, even if AB211 passes.
Under current law, it’s illegal to open a new tobacco bar. The bill would allow for new tobacco bar licenses to be issued for the first time since 2009. According to Wisconsin State Assembly Representative Nate Gustafson, who authored and introduced AB211, there are only 15 locations in Wisconsin currently operating as a tobacco bar in a state of nearly six million. Most, he says, are in and around Madison (the capital) and Milwaukee.
The new legislation won’t open to the doors to unfettered smoking. It’s only for cigar and pipe smoking (no cigarettes) and in addition to needing a liquor license, the cigar bars will be prohibited from serving food. Gustafson views that as a necessary concession to those who fear a return to smoking in restaurants, something that was banned here in 2009.
Concessions are key, as this bill was introduced before, and it failed. In 2023, Gustafson introduced virtually the exact same bill (AB451), but it ultimately died. This time, Gustafson is slightly altering his approach in hopes of smoothing out a path forward and minimizing opposition. “I strived to make it a bipartisan bill out of the gate,” he says. Though AB211 was introduced by Gustafson, who is a Republican, and is primarily a Republican-backed proposal, he says a Democrat authored the bill with him and says four Democrats were part of the introduction, compared to just one last time.
Bipartisan support has, so far, been split in the state, according to Gustafson. Milwaukee officials seem to support the move, and could benefit from it perhaps more than anywhere else, but Madison (the other big Democratic city in Wisconsin), doesn’t seem to share support. “It’s kind of been the rest of the state versus Madison,” says Gustafson. But Wisconsin’s capitol city needn’t worry, because even if this legislation passes, they still decide who gets tobacco bar licenses. “Ultimately, this bill restores local control,” he says. “If a local municipality doesn’t want to issue a tobacco bar license, they don’t have to.”
AB211 was formally introduced and read last Wednesday before being assigned to the Committee on State Affairs. The bill also has a “companion bill” in the Senate (SB211) that was introduced on April 16. AB211 was introduced by a group of 31 State Assembly Representatives and was co-sponsored by the five senators who introduced SB211.
Gustafson hopes to have a hearing on the bill potentially as early as June. “It could get to the Governor’s desk maybe before the end of the summer,” he says. “I think we’re feeling pretty confident that we can at least get it past our chambers.”
