A proposed statewide smoking ban was voted down by the North Carolina House this week, failing by a 55-61 margin, the Raleigh/Durham News & Observer reported May 3.

The measure fell despite the support of House Majority Leader Rep. Hugh Holliman. During debate on the measure, lawmakers argued the health benefits of the indoor-smoking ban and the measure's impact on the property rights of business owners.

"When you talk about freedoms, I think somebody else's freedom ends when it enters my lungs," said Rep. Jeff Barnhart, whose nonsmoking father-in-law died of lung cancer after being exposed to tobacco smoke in the workplace. "I guess I'm voting in favor of my father-in-law, but I'm also voting for his grandchildren who he didn't get to know."

But Rep. Ric Killian -- like Barnhart, a Republican -- said, "I believe upholding private property rights is simply more important to the fabric of our society than the effects of secondhand smoke."

Holliman, a cancer survivor, went forward with the vote despite uncertainty about its support in the House. "I hoped some people would switch and vote for it," he said. "Obviously, some people switched and voted against it." Sixteen Democrats joined 45 Republicans in voting against the bill.