No. 3-00
WHEREAS, the City and County of San Francisco expects to receive an estimated $585 million in Tobacco Settlement funds over the next 25 years and received the first two payments on the settlement agreement totaling $13.8 million in February 2000; and,
WHEREAS, Proposition A, approved by San Francisco voters in November 1999, provides that $1 million of the Tobacco Settlement funds would be dedicated to tobacco education, prevention and control efforts during the life of the Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center Replacement Bond Program; and,
WHEREAS, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors adopted Ordinance No. 583-99, urging that $1,000,000 per year of Tobacco Settlement funds be dedicated to tobacco education, prevention and control efforts; and Ordinance No. 38-00, which creates the Tobacco Education and Control Revenue Subaccount of the Tobacco Settlement Revenue Account, and deposits $1 million of the Tobacco Settlement into this Subaccount; and,
WHEREAS, tobacco education, prevention and control services are substantially more cost-effective than health care for tobacco-related disease and disability, and research has shown that consistent and adequate funding of comprehensive tobacco control programs are essential to counter the tobacco industry's targeting practices; and,
WHEREAS, communities of color are targets of heavy tobacco advertising that contributes to higher morbidity and mortality rates due to lung cancer, asthma and strokes; and,
WHEREAS, comprehensive public health strategies must be implemented to reduce tobacco use by addressing tobacco marketing, reducing availability and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, ensuring development and enforcement of tobacco control policies and regulations, and providing cessation services; and,
WHEREAS, tobacco control strategies should be consistent with the Centers for Disease Control's best practices, and viewed flexibility, reviewed regularly and modified according to information gathered from evaluations to ensure the greatest impact; and,
WHEREAS, San Francisco has tobacco laws, but no stable funding to vigorously enforce such laws; and,
WHEREAS, the Department is currently responsible for administering San Francisco's Tobacco Free Project which is the lead agency for developing, implementing and evaluating the comprehensive tobacco control plan for San Francisco, and administering State Proposition 99 funding and one-time settlement funds from the Mangini lawsuit ($1.5 million); and,
WHEREAS, the adult smoking prevalence rate in San Francisco decreased from 21.9% in 1990 to 17.7% in 1998, and 19% of San Francisco high school students were smoking compared to 36.4% on high school students nation-wide in 1997; and,
WHEREAS, Proposition 99 provides San Francisco with approximately $638,400 for fiscal year 1999-00, and has contributed to reducing smoking prevalence as evidenced by the state-wide reduction in tobacco sales tax revenue; and,
WHEREAS, Proposition A increases support for tobacco prevention and control activities beyond current funding to continue addressing smoking prevalence; and,
WHEREAS, Tobacco Settlement funds dedicated for tobacco prevention and control should be used to further tobacco control activities in the Department through the Tobacco Free Project in collaboration with the Tobacco Free Coalition; and,
WHEREAS, the Department supports a broad-based planning effort to ensure that tobacco control activities are responsive to the differing needs of the community and multi-year planning; now, therefore, be it,
RESOLVED, that the Health Commission recommends that funds in the Tobacco Education and Control Revenue Subaccount of the Tobacco Settlement Revenue Account be appropriated to the Department of Public Health to enhance tobacco prevention and control activities provided by the Tobacco Free Project; and, be it,
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Health Commission recommends that the $1 million in additional funds for fiscal year 2000-01 be used to: (1) evaluate prevention strategies designed to curb tobacco use, (2) enforce Federal, State and local tobacco control policies, (3) expand the media campaign, (4) support community-based tobacco control activities, (5) provide cessation services, enhance tobacco prevention and education strategies within the San Francisco Unified School District, and (7) provide administrative support; and, be it,
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Health Commission recommends that funding dedicated to tobacco prevention and control from the Tobacco Settlement be maintained in an interest bearing account; and, be it,
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Health Commission recommends this to the Board of Supervisors.
I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution was adopted by the Health Commission at its meeting of Tuesday, March 21, 2000.
Sandy Ouye Mori, Executive Secretary to the Health Commission