Other Policy
Research
Government inaction on ratings and government subsidies to the U.S. film industry help promote youth smoking
New research from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) suggests that the U.S., the U.K. and Canada are undermining tobacco prevention campaigns by providing financial incentives to U.S. movies that promote smoking. Researchers looked at subsidies provided to the American film industry by the countries and found that more funding is given to movies that feature smoking than to state tobacco prevention campaigns. The authors suggest that movies depicting smoking should be ineligible for government subsidies. Click here for background on the study, or click here to read the study in PLoS Medicine.
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Reports
New consortium resources
The Tobacco Control Legal Consortium has released new tips and tools sheets that provide information on flavored tobacco regulation issues. The Consortium’s new documents address regulating flavored tobacco products and the federal regulation of menthol tobacco products. The documents are part of a series of legal technical assistance guides, and are intended to be a starting point for organizations interested in implementing tobacco control measures. Click here to view a listing of the Consortium’s toolkits and guides.
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State Policy
State preemption of local advertising and youth access restrictions, 2000-2010
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concludes there has been no progress in reducing the number of states which preempt local restrictions on tobacco advertising or youth access to tobacco products from 2000 to 2010. Meanwhile, marked progress has been achieved over the past decade in reducing the number of states which preempt local smoke-free laws. Evidence from other countries shows that comprehensive restrictions on tobacco advertising reduce tobacco consumption. Evidence also indicates that restrictions on youth access to tobacco products, as part of a strong community mobilization effort, can reduce underage tobacco sales and youth tobacco use. Click here to read the full article in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, or click here to learn more about the issue of preemption.
Tobacco opponents worry anti-smoking efforts will be curtailed (IA)
Iowans are expressing concerns about a leadership transition and significant spending cuts to the state’s tobacco use prevention programs that they fear will reverse the progress the state has made in tobacco control. State funding to fight tobacco use was cut from $7.2 million to $2.8 million for fiscal year 2012. Smoke-free advocates believe the director of the Division of Tobacco Use Prevention and Control was pushed into early retirement due to the funding cut. The director of the state Department of Public Health, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, says the state acted within its statutory requirements when it eliminated the Division of Tobacco Use Prevention and Control, but other senators claim that Miller-Meeks does not have authority to reorganize without a change to the state law. Read more here.
Massachusetts stamping out anti-tobacco funding (MA)
In the past ten years, funding for tobacco control initiatives has dropped 90% in Massachusetts. In 2001, $50.5 million in state funding was set aside for anti-tobacco programs, but funding dropped to $4.1 million in 2011. Advocates say the cuts to prevention programs do not make financial sense since the costs of treating health problems resulting from tobacco use are high. State health officials say that recent budget cuts have forced them to reduce or eliminate funding even for beneficial programs. The director of the Massachusetts tobacco control program says she has strived to maintain key infrastructure, with some financial support from the federal government, in hopes that funding will be restored once the state recovers from the recession. Read more here.
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Tribal Policy
Only tribe members can buy untaxed cigarettes (Sac and Fox Nation)
The California Court of Appeals has decided that Black Hawk Tobacco Inc., a tobacco company owned by a member of the Sac and Fox Nation tribe from Oklahoma, can only sell its untaxed, non-fire safe cigarettes to members of federally recognized California tribes. Previously, Black Hawk had been selling cigarettes in retail stores located on a band of Mission Indian member land in Aqua Caliente, California, but the California Attorney General stopped sales because the cigarettes were not listed in the state’s directory and the cigarettes violated the various California Acts that require cigarettes to be fire-safe (self-extinguishing). Read more here.
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