Tobacco Documents Online

Anti-Smoking Movement is Multi-Million Dollar Industry The popular perception of the anti-smoking movement is one of dedicated volunteers with tiny budgets taking on large corporations. While that perception may have been valid twenty years ago, it has no validity today. The truth is that the organized anti-smoking movement ~ spent more ~hari $TK, million in 1995 alone, much of it money collected fr~m state and federal taxpayers. It is di ficult to know exactly how much money is being spent every yea on anti-smoking activities because many private charitie and organizations are not required to disclose the detai s of their budgets. Taxpayers pick up a big chunk of the anti-smoking tab. Federal taxpayer reve ues spent on anti-smoking efforts alone totaled approximately T11 million in 1995. At the state level, several states have specifically earmarked cigarette excise taxes for anti-smoking activities, including Massachusetts, Ca1'fornia, Michigan and Arizona.• In 1995, those four states spe t more than $400 million on anti-smoking activities. In ad 'tion, there are two large non-profit organizations -- the R ert Woods Johnson Foundation and the Campaign for Tob co-Free Kids -- that 2 ~ together spent more than $4~ million i 1995. Like the state efforts, these are multi-year programs at continue to funnel millions of dollars annually into hate and local anti-smoking coffers. ~

Where does all this money go? Well, a 1994 analysis of the American Heart Association, American Lung Association and the American cer Society, found that a significant amount of their annu 1 budgets go to pay salaries. This analysis, conducted by rofessors James Bennett of George Mason University and Thomas DiLorenzo of Loyola University and reported in thei jointly authored book, Unhealthy Charities, found that: "Des ite the self-proclaimed volunteer status of health charities, xecutive and staff compensation account for a significant p rcentage of their expenditures. For fiscal year 1991, 38.9 cents of each dollar spent by the ACS - went to compensation; or the~American Heart Associatioql, compensation took 34.3 ents of each dollar spent; and the American Lung Association spent 42.5 cents of each dollar on compensation." Professors Bennett and iLorenzo also fouxid that these hree charities spent a signif'cant percentage of their budgets on fundraising campaigns and advertising. While these charities also spend money o public education and research efforts, the point is that ar more money is being spent on non-research and education e orts than the public . Far from being a "shoe-string" operation, the organized anti-smoking movement has grown into a multi-million dollar, sophisticated industry, one in which thousands of people now earn their living. And while the popular perception of selfless volunteers working to advance their cause may might'believe.

persist, the fact remains, the anti-smoking movement is one of the most well-funded, government-subsidized industries in American history. - # # #