The Government and the Courts - The State Of Government Tobaccocontrol Efforts

The American Lung Association's State of Tobacco Control: 2004 report analyzes the performance of individual states in tobacco prevention measures. The report evaluated states in key areas such as smoke-free air, cigarette taxation, and restricting youths' access to tobacco. The majority of states were assigned a failing grade in these categories. Thirty-four states and the District of Columbia earned an "F" in smoke-free air laws. This is an improvement in the ratings from 2002, in which forty-three states and the District of Columbia ended up with an "F" in this category. In 2004, California, Delaware, Massachusetts, and New York state received an "A" in this category.

In 2004 twenty-three states received a failing grade for weakness in their laws restricting youth access to tobacco, down from twenty-eight in 2002. States receiving an "A" in this category were California, Connecticut, Maine, New York, Rhode Island, Texas, and Vermont.

Twelve states received an "F" grade for failure to raise cigarette taxes, down from seventeen in 2002. Finally, thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia received an "F" grade in tobacco program funding, up from thirty-two in 2002.

California's tobacco programs are often seen as a model for the rest of the nation. The state spends just over $108 million a year on tobacco education, smoking cessation and health care programs, and advertising. These funds come from the California Tobacco Tax and Health Promotion Act, passed in 1998, which imposed a twenty-five-cent-per-pack tax on cigarettes. This $108 million, however, falls short of the $165 million proposed as a minimum spending requirement by the CDC ("National Report Card Gives California Low Grades for Anti-Smoking Campaign," Ascribe Higher Education News Service, January 7, 2003). Nonetheless, the 2004 American Lung Association report notes that California's comprehensive approach to smoking prevention and cessation yielded a 14% decline in the incidence of lung cancer from 1988 to 1997, accounting for an estimated eleven thousand fewer cases of the disease.

Despite the low grades assigned, the American Lung Association report singles out positive efforts made in many states. Some examples of the successes highlighted in the report included:

• Idaho, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island passed laws that protect people from secondhand smoke.
• Massachusetts passed a comprehensive smoke-free air law prohibiting smoking in all workplaces, including restaurants and bars.
• Oklahoma passed a law prohibiting sales of tobacco products by self-service display.
• Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, and Mississippi maintained at least 90% of the CDC's minimum recommended funding level for tobacco control programs.
• Michigan, New Jersey, and Rhode Island have raised state cigarette taxes to at least $2.00 per pack.