Proposition 99 and the Legislative Mandate for the California Tobacco Prevention Program

Proposition 99

In November 1988, California voters approved the Tobacco Tax and Health Protection Act of 1988, also known as Proposition (Prop) 99. This initiative increased the state cigarette tax by 25 cents per pack, added an equivalent amount on other tobacco products, and designated a portion of the funds be used to prevent and reduce tobacco use. As shown in Table 1 below, Prop 99 revenues are deposited into six accounts by a formula and are used for specified purposes (Revenue and Taxation Code Section 30122(b), 30123, and 30124):

Table 1: List of Prop 99’s Six Accounts

The HEA funds both community- and school-based health education programs to prevent and reduce tobacco use and is jointly administered by the California Department of Public Health, California Tobacco Prevention Program (CDPH/CTPP) and the California Department of Education (CDE). Currently, CTPP receives approximately two-thirds of HEA funds and CDE receives approximately the other one-third. CTPP is responsible for supporting a statewide comprehensive tobacco control program, one of the largest and most successful public health interventions of its kind ever initiated, nationally or internationally. CTPP provides funding for 61 Local Lead Agencies (LLA), competitively selected community-based organizations, a statewide media campaign, and an extensive evaluation of the entire program.

The enabling legislation for Prop 99 includes Assembly Bill (AB) 75 (Chapter 1331, Statutes of 1989), AB 99 (Chapter 278, Statutes of 1991), AB 816 (Chapter 195, Statutes of 1994), AB 3487 (Chapter 199, Statutes of 1996), Senate Bill (SB) 99 (Chapter 1170, Statutes of 1991), SB 960 (Chapter 1328, Statutes of 1989), SB 493 (Chapter 194, Statutes of 1995); the annual State Budget; Health and Safety Code Sections 104350-104480, 104500-104545; and Revenue and Taxation Code Sections 30121-30130. The enabling legislation, the various codes, and the annual State Budget, provide legislative and funding authority for programs administered by CTPP to:

• Conduct health education interventions and behavior change programs at the state level, in the community and in other non-school settings.
• Apply the most current research findings and recommendations regarding tobacco use prevention.
• Give priority to programs that demonstrate an understanding of the role community norm change has in influencing behavioral change regarding tobacco use.

Proposition 56

Almost three decades after Prop 99’s passage, in November 2016, the voters of California overwhelmingly passed Prop 56, the California Healthcare, Research and Prevention Tobacco Tax Act of 2016. Prop 56 increased the cigarette tax from $0.87 to $2.87 per pack, taking California’s ranking from 37^th to 9^th in the nation. The initiative increased the tax on other tobacco products by an equivalent amount, including electronic cigarettes for the first time. With 64.4% of voters voting in favor of Prop 56, Californians sent a strong message to end the state’s tobacco epidemic. Prop 56 revenues are distributed to state agencies to pay for implementation costs (Table 2), with the remaining revenues distributed to other state agencies by a formula (Table 3), all of which are to be used for specified purposes (Revenue and Taxation Code Section 30130.55 and 30130.57).:

Table 2: Prop 56 Revenue Distribution for Implementation Costs

Table 3: Prop 56 Distribution of Remaining Revenue After Implementation Costs