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OCR Page 1 of 13THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
July 22, 1995
MEMORANDUM FOR
LEON PANETTA
ERSKINE BOWLES
ABNER MIKVA
PAT GRIFFIN
FROM:
HAROLD ICKES
JENNIFER O'CONNOR
SUBJECT:
The Synar Amendment and restrictions on youth access to tobacco
Attached is a copy of an undated memorandum on plain paper received today from the
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regarding the Synar Amendment (§1926 of
the Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration Reorganization Act of 1982) which
conditions a state's receipt of federal substance abuse block grants on the enactment and
enforcement of state laws prohibiting the sale or distribution of tobacco products to anyone under
the age of eighteen. Senator Ford brought this section to our attention.
We understand that the states had strong objections to the notice of proposed rulemaking issued
by HHS to implement the Synar Amendment. As a result, HHS redrafted the regulation, which
is now less restrictive than originally proposed. The redrafted rule has not yet been issued.
As we read this rather obtuse memorandum, the Synar Amendment requires each state to have in
effect laws restricting the sale of tobacco to anyone under the age of eighteen. It further requires
each state to submit an annual report to the Secretary of HHS describing how it has gone about
enforcing these laws and how successful it has been. If the Secretary determines that the state
has not sufficiently enforced these laws, she must cut the state's substance abuse block grant.
Other than as described below, the Synar Amendment does not provide a legal basis for HHS to
issue regulations restricting access to or advertising about tobacco.
The memorandum explains that the Synar Amendment cannot accomplish many of our goals for
reducing access to and demand for tobacco among young people. First, the Synar Amendment
cannot be used to reduce minors' demand for tobacco. Because federal statutes currently govern