DES MOINES - Bar and restaurant owners upset with the statewide smoking ban that went into effect Tuesday are taking legal action in an attempt to overturn the law.

A group led by the Iowa Bar Owners Coalition, a nonprofit organization based in Clinton County, filed a petition in Polk County District Court in Des Moines on Tuesday. The petition asks the court to put a halt on the ban until it can rule on the law's constitutionality, according to court documents.

The petition argues that Iowa lawmakers overstepped their constitutional authority when they approved the ban.

The plaintiffs claim the ban violates their right to "pursue useful and lawful businesses without oppressive regulations," according to the petition.

It also alleges that the enforcement rules written by the Iowa Department of Public Health allow for inspections and compliance checks on private property without warrants or probable cause.

No court date has been set.

Brian Froehlich, one of the plaintiffs and owner Fro's Pub 'n Grub in Wilton, said he and other business owners began kicking around the idea of taking legal action when the bill was signed into law in April.

"As soon as it hit the papers that the governor signed it, the movement was on and getting stronger," Froehlich said.

The ban hurts a wide range of businesses, but bars, pool halls and bowling alleys will take the biggest hits, he said.

The petition names Iowa Department of Public Health Director Thomas Newton, his agency and the State of Iowa as defendants.

Newton was attending meetings out of the state Wednesday and hadn't reviewed the petition, said department spokesman Don McCormick.

McCormick said Newton would meet with the Iowa Attorney General's office upon his return.

The attorney general's office received a copy of the petition Wednesday, but no one had gotten a chance to examine it in detail, said spokesman Bob Brammer.

George Eichhorn, the plaintiffs' attorney, said he is seeking a temporary injunction on the enforcement of the ban until the case can go to trial.

Eichhorn, a former Republican state representative from Stratford, said he would like to speak to a judge about the temporary injunction within a week.

He said the law interferes with the operation of small businesses like bars and restaurants.

"My big concern here is this bill seems to really hit the little guys hardest," he said. "I can see a lot of little businesses going out of business because of this legislation."

He also said the Iowa Department of Public Health had to rush to complete the rules for enforcing the law, and the public should have been given more time before its implementation.

The bill was signed into law by Gov. Chet Culver April 15 and took effect July 1. That left two-and-a-half months for public health officials to work out how they would interpret and enforce the legislation.

The process usually takes around four months.

The department won't completely finalize the enforcement rules until after a period of public comment expires Aug. 22.

Contact Fred Love at (515) 243-0138 or fred.love@lee.net.