Teleconference 4:
Enforcing Regulations and Rulemaking Before, During and After the Lawmakers Deliberate
Wednesday, October 22, 2008, 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm ET

Robin Hobart's addiction to tobacco control began in 1990, when fresh out of graduate school she took a job as a Program and Policy Analyst for the Contra Costa County (CA) Health Department's Tobacco Control Program. While there, Robin staffed the county coalition that organized to pass smokefree ordinances in the county's 17 incorporated jurisdictions, plus the county.

In 1992 she began working for Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights as a Policy Analyst. Over 7 ½ years, she served as Associate Director for Legislation and eventually as Co-Director. Her time at ANR is a blur of providing technical assistance and training to local and state advocates working to pass smokefree legislation, defending state and local tobacco control programs, and fighting preemptive legislation in states across the U.S. She also served as Principal Investigator and Program Director for research and advocacy projects funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the California Department of Health Services, and the University of California.

In 2002 Robin moved to Austin (TX), where she joined Tobacco-Free Austin, a local coalition organizing to pass a smokefree ordinance covering public places and workplaces, including restaurants and bars. After many twists and turns and hair-raising dramas, in May of 2005 the coalition finally achieved its goal of an ordinance which offered 100% smokefree protection to all workers.

Robin currently lives in Denver (CO) and consults on tobacco control issues. She provides technical assistance on communications and media advocacy, clean indoor air and secondhand smoke issues, policy advocacy and research, materials development, tracking and countering the tobacco industry, and program planning and implementation. Her clients have included the American Cancer Society, the American Medical Association's SmokeLess States Initiative, the Office on Smoking and Health, the Tobacco Technical Assistance Consortium, and UC San Francisco.

Robin received her M.P.H. and her M.P.P. from the University of California, Berkeley. She has participated in public policy research published in journals such as Tobacco Control, the Journal of the American Medical Association, the Journal of Public Health Policy, and written publications for the American Medical Association, the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the California Department of Health Services.

Mark Pertschuk is a consultant with particular expertise in public health policy, building effective grassroots movements and networks, and strategic planning and communications for advocacy organizations and campaigns. He is the past President and former Executive Director of Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights (ANR) and the American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation (ANRF) in Berkeley, California (1986 - 2007). From 1987 to 1990, Mark initiated and led the grassroots campaign to ban smoking on commercial airline flights in the United States.

Mark has served as a consultant, trainer and facilitator for numerous organizations and campaigns, including the Interfaith Alliance, TURN (The Utility Reform Network), the Campaign For Tobacco-Free Kids, and the California Department of Health Services. Mark served as a mentor and trainer in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Developing Leadership in Reducing Substance Abuse program from 2003 to 2006.

Mark has lectured extensively at conferences and universities, including the Ninth World Conference on Tobacco and Health in Paris, the keynote address at the Third California Conference on Hispanic/Latino Tobacco Control, and Stanford University. Mark has several publications including an article on the international tobacco industry in Le Monde Diplomatique (1997); a peer-reviewed article on preemption in firearm, alcohol and tobacco policy in the Journal of Public Health Policy (1998); and Solutions to Community Alcohol Problems: A Roadmap for Environmental Prevention, a unique guide to reducing community alcohol problems through environmental prevention and policy development(2005).

Mark is a graduate of Oberlin College and The American University, Washington College of Law, and a member of the California Bar Association.

Jeff Soukup is a program manager for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services Tobacco Free Nebraska program and works primarily in the areas of state and local policy development. Jeff has been working in the area of public health promotion and policy for almost twenty years. Jeff has also been actively involved both in the planning, policy development, collaboration, passage and implementation of several state and local tobacco initiatives including tobacco tax increase, local smokefree ordinances and funding for comprehensive tobacco prevention and control. He was most recently involved with the planning, passage and implementation of Nebraska's comprehensive smokefree state law which goes into effect June 1, 2009.