PHOTO: PRNewsFoto/Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
President Obama has proposed to expand early childhood education and fund it with an increase in federal tobacco taxes. In California, this initiative would provide 40,857 more children from low- and moderate-income families with access to high-quality preschool in the first year alone and prevent 143,300 kids from becoming addicted smokers, according to a report released today by nine organizations that focus on early learning and/or public health.
Additional California benefits include:
- Additional funds provided for preschool in the first year: $334.3 million
- Residents saved from premature, smoking-caused deaths: 84,000
In his fiscal year 2014 budget, President Obama proposed to expand federal funding for early education programs, paid for with a 94-cent per pack increase in the federal cigarette tax and a proportional increase in the federal tax on other tobacco products.
The report can be found at www.smarthealthykids.org. It details the educational and health benefits of the President’s proposal nationwide and in every state.
Nationwide, the President’s proposal would ensure that two million children in low- and moderate-income families have access to high-quality preschool and prevent 1.7 million kids from becoming addicted smokers.
Organizations releasing the report are the National Women’s Law Center, Save the Children, MomsRising, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and American Academy of Pediatrics.
For more information, visit www.tobaccofreekids.org.
