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THE SEDRCTARY OFHEA'ITH, EDUCATION,.AND WCIFARE WAS.HINOTON. O. G.20201 FEB 8 1978 The Honorable Daniel J. Flood Chairman, Subcommittee on Labor-Health, EdUcation and Welfare Commiztee on Appropriations House of Representatives - Washington, D. C. 20515 This responds to your February 1, 1978 letter on the subject of FY 1978 funds targeted toward smoking and health. I am sorry there has been confusion about the smoking and health initiative. I hope this letter will serve to clarif'y matters. )je currerltly plan to obligate $20.3 million in FY 1978 f4r the smokin.g and health inixiative: This is an increase of $3.1 million over the Department's original FY 1978'reqµest. In no instance are we planning to move funds from one budget line item to another, nor from one activity such as grants to another such as direct operations. What we have done is target funds on smoking and health within the amounts appropriated for the line items involved in the initiative. To be speeific; -- From unearmarked funds added by Congress to the 1978 budget, the National Cancer Institute and the National Heart and Lung Institute willi each target $500,000 on projects related to smoking and health. The Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administra- tion will allocate $1.2 million to behavioral research on smoking from the $10 million increase that Congress made in the budget request for mental health research. The total amount spent on mental health research will remain the same as in the Conference agreement. 'L, +X

® 76 - From within the $6 million appropriated for health education to the Center for Disease Control and the Assistant Secretary for Health, $2.1 million will be targeted on emoking and health. We are not proposing to change the total amount in the Conference agreement-for health education. r Our spending plan for health education is the result of a re-examina1i of priorities proposed in the budget request. The justification submitted with the 1978 budget does not propose a major expansion of smoking and health activities. The Senate report on the 1978 appropbill, states that $1 million of the CDC'appropriat3on should'be used the Smoking Information Clearinghouse. We are planning to spend an additional $1.1 million to expand our smoking and health education eunder the leadership of a new Office of Smoking and'Health in the Ofof the Assistant Secretary for Health. This represents a reordering priorities within the $6 million appropriated for health education. new 0 fice_of Smoking and Health will be estab_lished within current p~sirin.LlavPls under the authoritv nontained in P I~ 9- t7 the haConsumer Health Information and Health Promotion Act of 12Z6. As I am J sure the Committee recognizes, this kind of' a change in pla s within [h~ funds appropriated'for a program is a common occurrence. I believe that this description of our plans responds to the questions raised in your February L letter. r Sincerely, ;s/.Joe Joseph A. Califanoo Jr. .: ".,Lf+6=, ~,.