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Board Questions Scope of $600,000 Tobacco Control Funding; Staff Says Program Targets Tobacco and Vaping Countywide
Summary
Supervisors asked whether a proposed $600,000 addition for a tobacco control program will address vaping and whether staffing funded by the grant will persist if the grant ends; Health and Human Services staff said the grant focuses on tobacco and vaping, is countywide, and staffing is contingent on future grants.
Supervisors asked Health and Human Services staff about the scope and sustainability of a roughly $600,000 increase in tobacco-control program funding during the meeting.
A supervisor asked whether the tobacco-control program targets only tobacco or whether it also covers vaping and other substances. Sarah Collard of Health and Human Services said the program “focuses primarily on tobacco and vaping, which is sort of the big new issue there.” Collard said the program operates countywide and coordinates with school-based tobacco-prevention staff.
Supervisors asked how much of the grant dollars flow directly to prevention activities versus staffing. Collard said she would “get back to” the board with details about the proportions. On staffing continuity, Collard said positions funded by grants are often moved between grants when new funding is available; if a grant ends and no replacement funding is secured, those positions could end.
Board members signaled interest in more detail on program outcomes and on whether schools share costs when services are delivered in schools. Collard said school districts have their own tobacco-prevention staff and that the county program collaborates with them. The board did not take a separate vote on this discussion at the time it was presented; staff committed to provide additional information to supervisors.
