Campaign Re-Launch of "Snuff Tobacco Money Out of California Politics"
ACS CAN Urges Candidates and Officeholders to Reject Tobacco Money as Election Nears
Sacramento, CA – August 5, 2016 – The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) is reinvigorating its "Snuff Tobacco Money out of California Politics" campaign in light of recent historic legislative wins regarding tobacco control.
ACS CAN is once again challenging current officeholders and candidates for legislative and statewide offices to reject contributions from tobacco companies and their subsidiaries in order to continue making progress on policies that promotes public health.
"Until this year, tobacco companies successfully stymied every significant legislative effort that would have helped people quit tobacco use, prevented youth from starting or protecting people from second-hand smoke," said ACS CAN Senior Government Relations Director Tim Gibbs. "ACS CAN is proud that the "Snuff Tobacco Money out of California Politics" campaign helped motivate politicians to say no to tobacco influence, which helped push California back into the forefront of the modern tobacco-control movement. We certainly don’t think now is the time to back off."
The industry of addiction held a stranglehold on the legislature until May 4, 2016 when Governor Jerry Brown signed the most significant tobacco control legislation enacted in nearly two decades. The five bills included raising the tobacco sales age in California to 21 and regulating e-cigarettes.
Beginning in July of 2014, in an effort to expose the influence of Big Tobacco at the Capitol, ACS CAN asked candidates to reject the deception, pain and suffering that funds campaign contributions from tobacco companies. Since then, ACS CAN has been tracking all campaign contributions from the tobacco companies or one of their subsidiaries to candidates for legislative and statewide offices—sharing the results on notobaccomoney.org.
Contributions reports for the second quarter were released this week by the Secretary of State’s office showing nearly $400,000 has been contributed by tobacco giants Altria and RJ Reynolds to state campaigns, political parties or political action committees. Whenever candidates and lawmakers accept tobacco money they send a strong message that they are okay with a business model that makes a profit from killing Californians.
How much harm does tobacco cause?
• It is the single largest preventable cause of death.
• 40,000 Californians die from smoking every year.
• The annual health care costs in California directly caused by smoking are $13.29 billion.
• Taxpayers pay $3.5 billion each year in the form of tobacco-related Medi-Cal costs alone.
• Smoking-caused productivity loss in California is $10.35 billion a year. Page 2 of 2
The tobacco industry has already shelled out $17 million to fight the Prop 56 initiative to raise the cigarette tax in California $2 per pack and tax e-cigarettes for the first time.
California has one of the lowest tobacco taxes in the country due in large part to the enormous pressure Big Tobacco has applied on lawmakers—all in an effort to continue their quest to addict the next generation to tobacco in order to make huge profits.
"Don’t believe the lies their slick and deceptive TV ads will try to tell you," said Gibbs. "Every voter this November will have the chance to ‘say no’ to Big Tobacco and their dirty tricks by voting Yes on Prop 56."
About the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org.
Paid for by Fight Cancer – Yes on 56, sponsored by American Cancer Society, Inc. and American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Inc. Major funding by American Cancer Society, Inc.
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