Clear the Air

The 2nd Session of the 80th West Virginia Legislature began on Wednesday, January 11, 2012 in Charleston.

Governor Tomblin’s State of the State address to the joint House of Delegates and Senate contained, as expected, no references to tobacco control issues. The Governor’s proposed budget maintains state funding of tobacco prevention and education efforts at the same rate of $5.6 million. This amount remains only a fraction of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation for West Virginia which is $27.8 million.

Governor Tomblin recommended no new taxes in his proposed budget. With regard to tobacco taxes, the Administration’s Budget Summary Section on General Revenue Fund states:

“The Tobacco Products Tax consists of a per pack tax on cigarettes and a percentage tax on the wholesale price of other tobacco products. Programs continuing to discourage tobacco usage will dampen the outlook for long-term revenue growth for this tax. However, tax rate increases that are implemented in the states surrounding West Virginia can result in short-term increases in revenue.”

This shortsighted approach to the issue of tobacco taxation in West Virginia ignores the dramatic public health impact of raising West Virginia’s tobacco excise tax.

According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids , studies and experience in state after state show that higher cigarette taxes are one of the most effective ways to reduce smoking among both youth and adults. Every 10 percent increase in the price of cigarettes reduces youth smoking by about seven percent and overall cigarette consumption by about four percent.

The Coalition for a Tobacco-Free West Virginia and their partners plan on introducing legislation to increase the tobacco excise tax by $1.00 per pack to $1.55 and also increase the tax on other tobacco products (cigars, snuff, snus, etc.) to 50 percent of the wholesale price of the product.

The House Health and Human Resources Committee on Tuesday approved HB-2973 to increase the tobacco excise tax and provide $27 million in funding to tobacco control efforts.

The committee considered, and rejected, two amendments.

The first, by Delegate Patrick Lane, would have inserted into the legislation language providing for drug testing of citizens receiving public assistance.  This amendment was debated for over an hour before being soundly rejected by the committee.

The other amendment, by Delegate Ryan Ferns, would have reduced the tax increase on cigarettes to only 40 cents. This amendment was also rejected.

The bill then passed on a roll call vote with Delegates Ferns, Border, J. Miller, Andes, Ellington, Householder, Lane, C. Miller, Pasdon and Rowan voting no.

The bill now moves to the House Finance Committee.

The West Virginia Senate Health and Human Resources Committee today passed SB-362 which calls for increasing West Virginia’s tax on tobacco by $1 per pack for cigarettes (to $1.55 per pack) and to 50% of the wholesale price for all other tobacco pruducts.

The committee amended the bill as it was introduced by changing the dedication of revenues from the increased tax, estimated to be nearly $160 million, as follows:

- $50 million a yer for the West Virginia Retiree Health Benefit Trust Fund, which funds Other Post-Employment Benefits, or OPEB;

- $40 million a year for West Virginia Medicaid;

- $6 million annually for tobacco control;

- $1 million a year for the West Virginia School of Public Health for five years;

Additional revenues would be split up, with 30 percent going to oral health improvement programs, 30 percent to substance abuse and prevention, 24 percent to in-home elderly care and 16 percent for early childhood development programming.

The bill now goes to the Senate Finance Committee for further consideration.

The House of Delegates also has under consideration a companion bill, HB-2973, which is currently awaiting action by the House Health and Human Resources Committee.

You can send an email message to all of your legislators in support of this important legislation through the American Heart Association’s “You’re the Cure” Advocacy Network by clicking here!

Bills have been introduced in the West Virginia State Senate and House of Delegates to increase West Virginia’s excise tax on tobacco with a portion of the proceeds directed to tobacco control and other health-related programs.

SB-362 was introduced in the Senate by Senators Roman Prezioso, Dan Foster, Brooks McCabe and Acting Senate President Jeff Kessler and a companion bill, HB-2973, was introduced in the House by Delegates Delegates Don Perdue, Charlene Marshall, Barbara Hatfield and Nancy Peoples Guthrie.

Both bills call for increasing West Virginia excise tax on cigarettes by $1.00 to $1.55 per pack and the tax on other tobacco products from the current level of 7% of the wholesale price to 50% of the wholesale price.  The proposed legislation would also direct one-half of the tobacco tax revenues, up to $60 million, into a new fund to be known as the “West Virginia Healthy Future Fund”.  $27 million from the Fund would be transferred annually for tobacco prevention and eduction programs and the balance of the Fund each year would directed to public health, substance abuse or healthcare-related programs. Revenues beyond what is placed in the Fund would go to General Revenue.

According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids this legislation, if enacted, would generate nearly $160 million in total revenue and would result in a 15.4% reduction in youth smoking and 13,100 current adult tobacco users quitting.  In addition, West Virginia would see a long-term health savings of $458.7 million from these declines.

SB-362 has been referred to the Senate Health and Human Resources Committee and the to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration.

HB-2973 has been referred to the House Health and Human Resources Committee and the to the House Finance Committee.

Join tobacco control advocates, activists and concerned citizens from throughout West Virginia as we take our message to the Capitol on Thursday, March 3rd. This is an excellent opportunity to showcase your project, discuss your challenges with policy-makers and impact tobacco public policy in West Virginia.

Exhibition space is limited but still available and all participants must register no later than February 21st using the form attached here.

If you have any questions you can contact Cinny Kittle at 304-344-9744.

On Tuesday, June 10th, The Coalition for a Tobacco-Free West Virginia and the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids released the findings of a public opinion poll showing the broad support by West Virginia voters for increasing the tobacco tax by $1.00.

Here is video from the press conference featuring Hersha Arnold-Brown of the American Cancer Society, Chuck Hamsher of the American Heart Association, Pete Fisher from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids and Nathan Henry from the Mellman Group who conducted the poll.

For more information, including details of this poll, visit the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free West Virginia website.

Finance Committees in both the House and the Senate have passed out budget bills for FY2011 and there is good news - and bad news - in the proposals for tobacco control.

The House version of the budget restored funding to the tobacco prevention line item to the same level as FY2010 - $5,667,111 - eliminating the 11.5% cuts proposed by Governor Manchin.

However, the Senate kept the cuts advocated by Governor Manchin in his budget proposal and the Senate’s bill would only fund tobacco prevention efforts at $5,010,793.

Over the next few days the two chambers will go about the procedural requirements of appointing budget conferees who will work on hammering out differences between the two versions of the budget bill. Conferees will meet into next week during the extended budget session and, once their work is complete, the full legislature must pass the compromise budget bill to send it to the Governor.

Please contact your House and Senate members requesting that they support the funding of tobacco prevention efforts at NO LESS THAN the FY2010 level .

HB2773 is a bill relating to prohibited access and usage of tobacco products by minors. It increases the monetary penalties for selling tobacco products to minors; and providing that the sale or furnishing of tobacco products to minors may constitute grounds for dismissal as an act of misconduct; clarifying the impact of such a dismissal on the discharged employees’ eligibility to receive unemployment benefits; and increasing the monetary penalties for minors possessing tobacco products.

The bill, if passed by the Senate and signed by the Governor, will amend Sections §16-9A-2 and §16-9A-3 of the Code of West Virginia:

Increasing penalties for any individual who violates any of the provisions of this code are summarized as:

(1) guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined $100 (was $25) for the first offense.

(2) misdemeanor and at least $250 fine (was $100) but not more than $500 (was $200) for a second offense,

(3) misdemeanor and at least $500 fine (was $200) but not more than $750 (was $500) for the third offense,

(4) misdemeanor and at least $1,000 but not more than $5,000 for any subsequent offenses,

(5) Any individual who knowingly and intentionally sells, gives or furnishes or causes to be sold, given or furnished to any person under the age of eighteen years any cigar, cigarette, snuff, chewing tobacco or tobacco product, in any form, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, for the first offense shall be fined not more than $100; upon conviction thereof for a second or subsequent offense, is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500.

(6) Any employer who discovers that his or her employee has sold or furnished tobacco products to minors may dismiss such employee for cause. Any such discharge shall be considered as “gross misconduct” for the purposes of determining the discharged employee’s eligibility for unemployment benefits in accordance with the provisions of section three, article six, chapter twenty-one-a of this code, if the employer has provided the employee with prior written notice in the workplace that such act or acts may result in their termination from employment.

BREAKING NEWS!

Governor Manchin’s proposed budget for FY11 calls for a cut of over 11.5% from the tobacco prevention and education program.

The proposed cut to this program would be $656,318.

More details to come as the Governor and Administrative officials present the budget to the Finance Committees today.