Council Meeting: June 21, 2005 Santa Monica, California

TO: Mayor and City Council

FROM: City Staff

SUBJECT: A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Santa Monica Authorizing the Mayor to Submit on Behalf of the City Council a Letter of Support for Assembly Bill 1612, The Cigarette Pollution and Litter Prevention Act of 2005

Introduction

This report recommends that the City Council adopt the attached resolution authorizing the Mayor to submit a letter to the California Legislature in support of Assembly Bill 1612, the Cigarette Pollution and Litter Prevention Act of 2005 (the Act). If passed, the Act would create the Cigarette Pollution Prevention and Litter Fund (the Fund). The Fund would be administered by the State Board of Equalization and would provide funds to local and state government agencies to offset costs associated with litter cleanup and help mitigate cigarette pollution.

Background

There are approximately four million smokers in California who annually consume an estimated 1.2 billion packs of cigarettes, or approximately 22 billion cigarettes. Pollution and litter from these cigarettes and their remnants pose a significant and growing cost to taxpayers, public health and the environment. While cigarettes have long been recognized as a source of air pollution and harm to human health, only recently has attention begun to focus on discarded cigarettes as a source of water pollution.

Litter studies have consistently found discarded cigarette filters to be the single most commonly littered item on beaches, parks and roadways, accounting for over 20% of items collected. Over the last 20 years of the state’s annual coastal cleanup program, cigarette butts have been found to be the most commonly littered item, and in recent years have accounted for nearly 40% of items littered on California beaches.

Cigarettes and other litter discarded on our streets are regularly flushed into the storm drain system by rain and other run-off into rivers and the ocean via drain inlets and pipe networks. Litter in waterways degrades water quality, wildlife habitat, and the recreational enjoyment of rivers, bays, and beaches. There are 1,400 chemical additives potentially found in cigarettes, of which 60 are known human carcinogens, including arsenic, formaldehyde, chromium. These chemicals accumulate in cigarette filters, which are very slow to degrade and which leach the residual chemicals into the environment. Toxicological data has shown that these chemicals from discarded cigarette filters are capable of damaging aquatic ecosystems. Nicotine itself is a powerful insecticide and has been shown to be lethal to species of fish, crustaceans, zooplankton, and other aquatic organisms.

Discussion

Efforts to reduce and cleanup cigarette pollution and litter are resulting in significant new costs for public agencies and taxpayers. Public agencies in California are already spending over one billion dollars annually on litter cleanup. Cigarette litter is a significant contributor to storm drain trash in California.

The objective of this legislation is to impose a fee on every purchase of cigarettes sufficient to offset cigarettes’ fair share of current and future taxpayer costs of cigarette pollution and litter cleanup, along with efforts to prevent it. It is anticipated that a fee level in the 10 to 20 cents per pack range will be needed to address the cigarette litter problem. If 1.2 billion packs of cigarettes are sold in California annually, then a 10 cent fee would generate approximately $120 million annually.

Budget/Financial Impact

In the event Assembly Bill 1612 is adopted and signed, the City may expect to receive proceeds from the Fund to reimburse the City for some costs associated with litter control and abatement. The amount of funds the City would receive cannot be determined at this time.

Recommendation

Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the attached resolution authorizing the Mayor to submit a letter of support to the State Legislature for AB1612, the Cigarette Pollution and Litter Prevention Act of 2005.

Prepared by: Craig Perkins, Director, Environmental and Public Works Management

Brian Johnson, Manager, Environmental Programs Division

Neal Shapiro, Senior Administrative Analyst

Attachment: Resolution