No. 11-02
WHEREAS, in 1998 the City Attorney joined the Oakland-based Environmental Law Foundation in filing a suit against eight smokeless tobacco companies and 11 retail chains under Proposition 65, the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act; and,
WHEREAS, in 2001 a settlement was reached with the smokeless tobacco makers and sellers to pay $2.75 million and post warnings of smokeless tobacco products’ health hazards in stores; and,
WHEREAS, $313,465 was allocated to the Department of Public Health; and,
WHEREAS, Ordinance #240-01, adopted by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on December 3, 2001 and signed by Mayor Willie L. Brown, Jr. on December 7, 2001, authorized acceptance of the funds for public education and advocacy related to smokeless tobacco; and,
WHEREAS, the ordinance required the Department of Public Health to submit a specific request for the appropriation of the funds; and,
WHEREAS, the proposed plan would utilize a comprehensive approach to tobacco control and includes three components: (1) media campaign, (2) enforcement of settlement requirements related to posting of health warnings, as well as enforcement of bans on sale of smokeless tobacco to minors and tobacco self-service merchandise, and (3) a policy development campaign to be carried out by a community-based organization utilizing the community capacity building process; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the Health Commission of the City and County of San Francisco hereby approves the proposal for the smokeless tobacco settlement funds; and, be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Health Commission urges the Board of Supervisors to approve the appropriation of funds for this proposal.
I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution was adopted by the San Francisco Health Commission at its meeting of October 1, 2002.
Michele Olson, Executive Secretary to the Health Commission