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For Immediate Release October 14, 2005

Contact: Jennifer Friedman 202.296.5469

Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund Endorses Senator Jon Corzine for New Jersey Governor

Statement of William V. Corr, Executive Director, Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund

West Orange, NJ - The Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund is pleased to announce our endorsement of U.S. Senator Jon Corzine for Governor of New Jersey. Jon Corzine is a committed leader in the fight against tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke. He knows what it takes to reduce tobacco's devastating toll on our families, and he is the only candidate in this race who has taken a brave stance in support of a strong smoke-free workplace law for New Jersey. A vote for Jon Corzine is a vote to protect the right of all New Jersey residents to breathe clean air. We are confident that Jon Corzine will make a real difference for New Jersey by advocating policies that not only reduce smoking and save lives, but also save money for New Jersey taxpayers by reducing smoking-caused health care costs.

Jon Corzine has a long history of championing policies to protect the health of New Jersey citizens, from advocating for affordable health care coverage to backing measures for cleaner air. In the United States Senate, he voted for legislation to crack down on tobacco marketing to kids and to stop the tobacco companies from deceiving the public about their deadly products. We are confident from his record and from his priorities during this campaign that Jon Corzine will continue to fight to reduce tobacco use and make the health of New Jersey citizens his priority.

We are especially pleased that Jon Corzine has expressed his strong support for legislation that would make all New Jersey workplaces, including restaurants and bars, smoke-free. Jon Corzine is committed to passing this legislation because he knows that secondhand smoke isn't just annoying. Secondhand smoke is scientifically proven to cause lung cancer, heart disease, serious respiratory illnesses and developmental problems in children.

According to the CDC, secondhand smoke is responsible for more than 38,000 deaths in the United States each year, including more than 980 deaths in New Jersey. Jon Corzine knows that all workers have the right to earn a living without putting themselves at risk of the life-threatening diseases caused by secondhand smoke. He knows that all of us, including especially children and the elderly, should be able to go out to restaurants and other public places without putting our health at risk. Every time we're exposed to secondhand smoke, we're exposed to the more than 4,000 chemicals and at least 69 carcinogens that it contains. It's time to clear the air in New Jersey, as it's neighbors in New York and Delaware have done, and as many other states and cities and even entire countries like Ireland and Italy have done.

We also want to applaud and thank Acting Governor Richard Codey for his leadership and foresight in supporting the smoke-free workplace legislation and other measures to reduce tobacco use, especially among children. He has been a true champion of better health care and mental health in New Jersey. We look forward to working with Governor Codey and Jon Corzine, the next governor of New Jersey, to enact and implement the smoke-free workplace law.

New Jersey can rest assured that smoke-free laws protect health without harming business, as the experience of smoke-free states and cities has demonstrated time and time again. Dozens of studies and hard economic data have shown that smoke-free laws do not harm sales or employment in restaurants and bars and may even have a positive impact. Some of the strongest evidence comes from New York City. A report found that in the year after the city's smoke-free law took effect March 30, 2003, business receipts for restaurants and bars increased, employment rose, the number of liquor licenses increased, virtually all establishments are complying with the law, and the vast majority of New Yorkers support the law. In Delaware, business remained steady in the year after the smoke-free law went into effect. In fact, the number of restaurant, tavern and taproom licenses and employment in food service and drinking establishments all increased in Delaware after the smoke-free law took effect, according to state statistics. Going smoke-free is good for health and good for business.

New Jersey needs a governor who will take a stand against tobacco use because it is the leading preventable cause of death in the nation and in New Jersey. Tobacco use claims more than 400,000 lives in our country each year, more than 11,200 of them in New Jersey. Tobacco use costs New Jersey $2.9 billion annually in health care bills. Government expenditures related to tobacco amount to a hidden tax of $627 each year on every New Jersey household. We are confident that Jon Corzine will do what it takes to reduce tobacco's devastating toll and protect the health of all New Jersey citizens.

The Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund endorsed Senator Jon Corzine for Governor of New Jersey at an event at the Edison Middle School in West Orange, New Jersey on Friday, October 14, 2005.

More information on the Corzine for Governor campaign is available at www.corzineforgovernor.com.