History: CAFE Iowa CAN was organized in response to the Supreme Court's decision on May 7, 2003 on the local government's authority to pass laws regulating smoking at the local level.  Citizens from across the state came together to advocate for local control. Our goal was to educate the public about the dangers of secondhand smoke and prepare them to become better advocates. CAFE helped draft Iowa’s comprehensive tobacco prevention strategy. We believe Iowa must have smokefree worksites and public places, an increased in the tobacco tax, and a fully funded prevention program to protect the health of all Iowans.

The 2007 legislative session passed a $1.00 tobacco tax and an increased spending on tobacco control, but they failed to restore local control. Our priority for the 2008 legislative session is to restore local control.  

Mission: To reduce tobacco-related death and disease.

Vision:  To increase the cost of tobacco products, increase smokefree environments, and ensure a fully-funded comprehensive tobacco prevention program in Iowa.

Projected Benefits from a $1 Cigarette Tax Increase in Iowa:

·          New state cigarette tax revenues each year:  $146.9 million
·          Pack sales decline in state:  - 73.1 million
·          Percent decrease in youth smoking:  19.3%
·          Increase in total number of kids alive today who will not become smokers: 39,700

·          Number of current adult smokers in the state who would quit:  20,900
·          Number of smoking affected births avoided over next five years:  6,530
·          Number of current adult smokers saved from smoking-caused death:  5,500
·          Number of kids alive today saved from premature smoking-caused death:  12,700

Secondhand Smoke is Dangerous
·          53,000 people die each year from diseases related to secondhand smoke, 500 of them are Iowans.
·          Secondhand smoke is the 3rd leading cause of preventable death in the U.S.
·          Secondhand smoke contains up to 50 known carcinogens defined by the EPA.
·          There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke.
·          Over 400,000 smokers die each year from smoking related disease.

People Have the Right to Breathe Clean Air. Everyone needs to breathe. There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke is the 3 rd leading preventable cause of disease and death, both in adults and children. Every year 53,000 people die from smoking related diseases, 500 of these are Iowans.

Local Control Engages the Entire Community. Local control works because it allows a community to have a discussion about the health risks of secondhand smoke and develop a solution that fits their community. During this process, the community gains an increased understanding of the health risks associated with secondhand smoke, resulting in strong community support for a law protecting nonsmokers.

Local Policies Work. Meaningful clean indoor air legislation is much easier to enact at the local level where policymakers are most responsive to the concerns of constituents and less influenced by the tobacco industry.

Iowans Want Local Control. According to the 2004 Adult Tobacco Survey conducted by the Gallup Organization, 88 percent of Iowans agreed that people should be protected from secondhand smoke.