CRIPPLE CREEK, Colo. -- Another Colorado casino is allowing patrons to light up while gambling, claiming it is exempt from the statewide smoking ban as a cigar bar.

A casino in Cripple Creek is allowing gamblers to smoke inside, according to Colorado Springs Gazette.

Bronco Billy's casino is in eight historic storefronts on Bennett Avenue in downtown Cripple Creek. The Gazette is reporting the smoking section occupies about 25 percent of the floor space.

Stephanie Steinberg of Smoke-Free Gaming of Colorado scoffed at the claim, saying Bronco Billy's has always operated as a casino never as a cigar bar.

Colorado casinos went smoke-free Jan. 1. That's when the statewide smoking ban was extended to include gaming establishments.

The law has a loophole that allows smoking at cigar bars. To get that exemption, a bar must earn at least 5 percent of its annual gross income or $50,000 annually from the sale of tobacco products.

Mark Murphy, a partner in the casino, said Bronco Billy's has met the minimum sales figures for tobacco to qualify for the exemption.

One other casino in the state, the Wild Card in Black Hawk, has also claimed exemption as a cigar bar.

Casino revenue has been down every month this year. Casinos admit it may be because of the economy, but they also blame the smoking ban.

Murphy said Cripple Creek Police Chief Gary Hamilton checked the smoking area's signs and ventilation on Monday, and police had not written any citations.

Murphy said the casino has not advertised the change and the reaction from customers was muted.

"Those that are smokers are happy that they are again being accommodated, and most of the nonsmokers were happy that the majority of the area is still nonsmoking," he said Tuesday.

Read more about Bronco Billy's in Tuesday's Colorado Springs Gazette.