Despite a tobacco-tax increase and money from a large tobacco settlement, South Dakota does not spend enough on smoking prevention, according to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

The Washington-based nonprofit ranks South Dakota 24th in spending on tobacco prevention and cessation programs. South Dakota's place rose from 29th a year ago, but the move came because other states made cuts and not because South Dakota made progress, Vince Willmore, a spokesman for the campaign, said. "States have more of an obligation than ever to use their tobacco settlement money for tobacco prevention because we have more evidence than ever that tobacco prevention programs work," Willmore said. He added that states save about $3 in health care costs for every $1 spent on prevention. South Dakota Health Secretary Doneen Hollingsworth said the spending was appropriate, given the state's finances. "We're dealing with the budget that we have, and I think we make it go a long ways," Hollingsworth said. "It's hard for federal agencies or national groups to realize that the cookie cutter doesn't always fit." The state Department of Health plans to spend $2.2 million for fiscal year 2004, about a third of what the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends. About $28.6 million in tobacco taxes will flow into state coffers during that time, said Jason Dilges, South Dakota's budget commissioner. The state also has access to $14 million in interest from the 1998 tobacco settlement, he said. That interest comes from a $278 million lump-sum payment the state took in August and put in the Education Enhancement Trust Fund. The interest can be spent for any purpose, and has been used mostly for education. South Dakota's spending on tobacco prevention is part of a nationwide decline since the November 1998 settlement, in which tobacco companies agreed to pay 46 states $206 billion over 25 years, campaign officials said. States committed to spending 9 percent of their settlement money in 2000 on prevention and cessation, but only 3 percent in fiscal year 2004, the campaign said. Tight budgets are not an excuse, Willmore said. "Thirty-two states have increased their tobacco taxes over the last couple of years, so despite the budget shortfalls they're facing, they're actually getting more money from tobacco," he said. Hollingsworth noted the Quit Line cessation program as evidence of the state's commitment. The line took calls from 18,000 people trying to quit. A preliminary study shows callers who accepted counseling from Quit Line staff were up to five times as likely to quit as people who tried to quit on their own, Hollingsworth said. The department also sponsors 21 local programs in 18 communities, aimed at keeping kids from taking up tobacco. Kitty Kinsman, spokeswoman for the South Dakota Tobacco-Free Kids Network, applauded that investment but said the state should expand its efforts. "We should have far more community-based programs today than 18," she said. "There is certainly money. The question is whether or not the political will is there."

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