Tobacco Documents Online

~ To: Date: Subject: Media/Commuru'cations Committee Members March 18, 1993 Fh'r`IM Audience & Message Point Development As per yesterday's meeting, It was agreed that we would address the following aud.lences. Along with a Iisting of the audiences !s an inih'al effort at the.ir respective message points. ,Remembe.r, this was an exercise to help us determine the elements we need for informationJpress packages. These messages are not necessarily urJque to each audience. 1;yLM: FET Tncrease 1s,udience: Federa.lOfficials me, e Point,: Tax is a middle-class tax Increase. During the ~ course of the presidential campaign, candidate BiU Clinton promised he wouldn't raise the taxes of the middle class. Similarly, the promise that President Cl.inton made that those with earnings below S30,000 would not be taxed has now "gone out the window". Additionally, this tax will seriously hurt a fragile economy and 850,000 Jobs wi1.l be lost. Audience: State Officials • JJe: An Ft:'T' Increase will cause an erosion in state revenues which will mean additional new taxes at the state level.

• Audience: Southeast States Elected Officials ' : An FET Increase will have a disastxous/cataciysm.lc hJ? effect on the economy in the southeastern states. More jobs will be lost due to this tax in the south and southeast than to the national recession that we are finaUy starting to recover from. • RjR/PM Plant Community Locations - Elected Offlcials Will cause jobs to be lost which wil1 hurt the local economy. Also, erosion In company tobacco revenues adversely affects our ability to invest In non-tobacco operating companies and the jobs and tax revenues they produce. A~t dience: Consumers/Smokers Mes~a~e Points Smokers should not be asked to pay any more - they • already contributemore than 13 billion doUars.to the economy than non-smokers. The proposed increase Is discrhmunatory. If a program Is to benefit all Americans - it should be broadly funded. The real problem with the system is not the lack of money - but out of con trol costs. The medical care system i tself Is in need of general surgery if it's to be reformed. Don't throw more money at the health care system; f;x it Instead. ' : Non-smokers Messa~e Points: The proposed tax increase will not work because taxes alone won't cure the crisis Pn health care and new tax dollars will be needed on both the federal and state levels. Aud i Q,m: Farmers i :'rhe proposed tax w;11 be a cataclysm for the tobacco farmer and the economy of the tobacco growing states, ~ Tobacco farmers will be unable to replace their hlghlyprofitable tobacco crops and as a result they, and their state's economy, wiu suffer.

• Lf tobacco farmers switch to alternative crops •• the markets of those crops throughout the United States will be destabilized and econom.ic disaster will reverberate In every farm3ng commuru'ty. Audience: Suppliers Me,~: Reduced demand for tobacco will not only economicaity hurt tobacco farmers but wiIW hurt all Involved with the manufacture and sale of cigarettes from the pesticide and seed salesmen to the tractor sellers to the trucker who brings the finished product to retail. Audie=: Retailers M~ss~ The retail and convenience store communities will bear a large part of the jobs lost if this tax is enacted. Cigarettes are among the most profitable products sold in those stores and provide a key ~ revenue stream that helps to keep many stores open and many people employed. AUciie=: State Excise Tax Dollar Recipients/State Funded Programs Me,~: Another case of dimin..ishing returns. Thfs earmarked tax wil1 erode excise tax revenues at the state level and cause Iawmakers to look for additional sources of income. Those new taxes may not be as "politically acceptable" as the current source of funding and . support for the program may erode. Accordingly, this scenario puts state discretionary programs at substantial risk. It's poor policy to earmark the funding of any program to tobacco revenues where the base of consumers Is declining everyyear. AjBdience: Organized Labor ~ ~ ~ 00 • kjeuAge: This proposed tax Is regressive because it hits the poor and rrdddle class much harder than those who are better off. trl cc 0 ~ Many tobacco related jobs, many of them un.ion members, wM be Iost ~ ~ . as almost 850,004 jobs dlsappear from the Amerlcao economy.

Audtence: Health Care Reformers is M0;,n_e: The entire health care system needs to be overhauled. The answer Is not more money, but one of fundamental reform. If in the final analysis, more money Is the answer It should come from a general broad based tax. Get the system fixed. ,gmdLens-e Minority Groups me5Aag.e: African and Hispanic Americans will bear the hlghest hardships if this tax Is enacted. It's regressive and wil.I cause serious Job losses among the small businesses -- who depend on cigarette sales revenues -- in the minority community. Last in/fixst out. Further, erosion of discretionary programs of benefit to the minority cornmunity. Audiences: Chamber's of Commerce/Business Organizations ,gl: The proposed tax is unnecessary since the problem Is not Mess,v fiscal but structvral. Government doesn't need to throw more money at the health care system - - it needs to fundamentally reform the system. Even if more dollars were needed, to take tbem from a revenue base where the receipts are declining doesn't make good economic sense. Unstable revenue sources lead to more taxes from other areas. Audience: Anti-Tax Activists The Adrrzinist.ration should focus on cutting spending -- not raising any taxes -- if the budget and health care costs are to be finally controlled. a ~ ~ . ~ _'~.r The following Ust is submitted as an addendum to the report for your , ~ review. Please make addittons as needed. cll~

• • Au iences: ~ Elected O~ ~cials , Regulato Officials Smokers Non-smokers/ta.xpayers/generai pu b11C Conservatave/Liberal MedJa Employees (Tobacco/Non-tobacco) Scientific Community Restaurant/Hospitality Human Resou rces Labor Business Legal Industry ..

0 Env3ronmen tal Tobacco Smoke 21ote: All of the M projects discussed be.low and additzon.at work on such projects are pending subject to decisions regarding Uttgad•on. L Develop Press Package for M Su-rxunaxy: Developing mu1d-use, modu.Iar press/Laformation . packages mored for "ferent audiences. Status: " o~ Audiences and messages preRm.inarily ide.ntzned, • o pMIR,jR/T1 gathering and forwarding aII releva.nt rrLaterials to B-M for review and catalogfng. o B-M to contact APCO'regarc3fng coalition building and ~ development of inessage points for speMc audiences. if. Develop Comprehensive I,TEs Program to Support h-FS Objectives, Surnxnary: pocus proactive/reactive LTEs on key opi.n.ioa creatIng rzewspapers/pubtications of selected elected - officials/appointed officlaZs, with ccs to those legislators, appointed offidals. Status: o B-M has created prototype media list a.nd !s expandfng to Include top 100 newspapers and state capitals media.. o PWRJR wil.1 contact field coordinators,lobbyists et:c. to bave them expand their monitorMg of local press and to have tbem b.e1p iden tify poten tial au t.hors. \z o' PM/l~R e.ach to draft 25 i,T~s. ~ pEL L Promote 5peakers In Local Markets ~ , .. ~ . ~, ~~

0- Sunvnary-. Desigb speakers' program for placement of IcientMed spokespersons in Iocal m.arkets designed to attract press atteAtion. Status: o B-M preparing memo/gu-idelines on identif~ring potential r forums and making contacts. o pM/RJR to identhfy potential speakers and procure op-ed wrjtexs for articles based on speeches. o pIv,(/'RJIt preparlng 2 generic M speeches each (~ each w/slide backup) • IV. Educate Kewspapex Opinion Creators via Ed Boards = Sui.vnary: Cont3nue o~ngoi.og key opinion leader educat~'on..al ' outreach program, wh.ite identifying and expanding program to key uational, state/state capital and local newspapers, Status: o B-M has prep ared prcm to typ e m edia !is t an dis exxpan djn g, V. Establish Presence on Setected Rad3o Talk Shows Sununary: Try to use expert third parties and media-tralned activists to reinforce press effort.s with national and local radio talk sbow opportv.n.ities. St.atus: o B-M has prepared prototype medla list and is expanding • o Ph(!RjR talking to government affairs/field.coordinators to Identi.fy appropriate topics,spokespersons. ,~evelop Comprehensive Op-ed Prog,ralxi to Support M ~ VL . pbfectives.

~ Surruna.iy. Develop op-eds, both proactive and rea.ctive, for placement In selected natlonal, state/state capital and Iocal • newspapers. Status; •, o B-M has developed prototype med.ia ilst and Is expand3ng o PMMR each d.rai'ting 6 op-eds, message poluts and LM • • to support op--eds. •