Score: +2
(2/0/0)
Ventura County Grand Jury
• 2000-2001
Ventura County Grand Jury Report Tobacco Moneys
⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings and Recommendations 25 findings
F1
The Act increased the tax on a pack of cigarettes by 25 cents.
No recommendations for this finding
F2
The Act increased the tax on other tobacco products by 42 cents.
No recommendations for this finding
F3
The Act created the largest, most aggressive tobacco control program in the world at the time it was established.
No recommendations for this finding
F4
The Act provided a combination of paid anti-tobacco media campaigns, community-based interventions, and development of local tobacco control policies. Also, Proposition 99 funded research into the effects of involuntary smoking, the effectiveness of cigarette advertising, and the political activity of the tobacco industry.
No recommendations for this finding
F5
California experienced a decline in the prevalence of smoking greater than the rest of the country after passage. According to the University of San Francisco Medical School, from January 1, 1989 through June 30, 1994, California experienced a decline that was approximately three times as fast as the rest of the country for the same time period. [www.ucsf.edu/campus/schmed/ihps/Proposition99.htm]
No recommendations for this finding
F6
Ventura County receives approximately $5-million annually from Prop- osition 99 for children’s health care and education, but it is a declining amount.
No recommendations for this finding
F7
It is anticipated that money received from the tobacco surtax created under Proposition 10 will replace the dwindling Proposition 99 money. The Jury during its study of The California Children and Families First Act, Proposition 10, established the following:
No recommendations for this finding
F8
In order to receive Proposition 10 funds, the Board of Supervisors must adopt an ordinance creating a children and families first commission, appoint a majority of the commission’s members, establish a county Children and Families First Trust Fund, and complete a strategic plan to be approved by the Board and sent to the state commission.
No recommendations for this finding
F9
The nine-member Children and Families First Commission of Ventura County was established by the Board of Supervisors on June 28, 1999. It is comprised of one member of the Board of Supervisors, one member appointed by each of the five Board members, one member representative from the Child Care Planning Council, and two representatives from County organizations providing services (Directors of Human Services Agency and the County Public Health Officer.)
No recommendations for this finding
F10
Allocation to individual counties will be based on the number of births in the county as a percentage of the statewide total.
No recommendations for this finding
F11
Ventura County will receive approximately $11.7 million per year from Proposition 10 to serve the needs of 63,000 children, aged 0-5, and their families.
No recommendations for this finding
F12
The three principle goals and allocation of funds adopted by the County Commission in April 2000 are: 1. School readiness – emotionally, socially and academically - $6,475,000 (55%) 39 Final Report . Children’s mental and physical health - $1,619,000 (14%) 3. Family strengthening to provide for needs of children - $1,619,000 (14%)
No recommendations for this finding
F13
The final area of funding is for “other,” which includes training, oversight and evaluation, community education, capacity develop- ment, special studies, and administration - $1,987,000 (17%.) (See figure 1. First Year Annual Operating Plan)
No recommendations for this finding
F14
The Commission is looking for college and university personnel to conduct the evaluation and training component of the program, which will be called the Center for Excellence. The group selected for this will be announced in July 2001.
No recommendations for this finding
F15
The Commission also provides funding for these areas: • Neighborhoods for Learning Initiative – targeted to provide school readiness for children through integrated services for child and family, e.g., language assistance. • Health Initiative – funds for programs that provide access to comprehensive health care services. • Family Strengthening Initiative – programs to improve parenting. • Community Investment Fund – low interest loans and/ or “seed” money to help creation and funding of programs for children and their families. • Center for Excellence – funds set aside to provide for training and ongoing evaluation of results of programs. G /A $ % OAL REA Children will be emotionally, socially and 6,475,000 55 acdemically ready for school Children will be physically & mentally healthy 1,619,000 14 Families will provide an environment that 1,619,000 14 supports the physical, mental, emotional, social, intellectual and linguistic development of their children Other 1,987,000 17 • Training • Evaluation • Community Education • Capacity Development • Special Studies • Administration Total 11,700,000 100 Figure 1. First Year Annual Operating Plan of the Ventura County Children and Families First Commission 40
No recommendations for this finding
F16
By January 2001, the Commission had approved just under $1.3-million in funding for 36 projects that addressed a wide array of needs including dental health, child safety, domestic violence, special needs playgrounds and increased access to child care services.
No recommendations for this finding
F17
In March, 200l the Commission in a collaborative partnership with the Ventura County Child Care Planning Council announced a $750,000 program to provide training stipends to early child care providers in an effort to improve their education and retention.
No recommendations for this finding
F18
The Commission is leveraging funds by working with other organizations and by establishing an endowment fund to keep revenue flow more constant should tobacco sales decrease as directed by Proposition 10.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The directors of each program should leverage tobacco money received in order to ensure a relatively consistent financial base.
F19
Paid staff includes a maximum of six, including two contract managers to do monitoring of programs. Several staff members are bilingual.
No recommendations for this finding
F20
For funding, organizations must submit applications for grants. Plans include offering training in grant writing.
No recommendations for this finding
F21
Funding currently approved is dominated by established Ventura County organizations. The Commission is working to develop outreach programs to include the underserved population not located in urban centers into its sphere of support.
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
The Tobacco Settlement money should be used for both public and private sector health care in an effort to bring the greatest benefits to the County’s populace.
F22
The Commission is searching for ways to address the problem of convenient public transportation within the County for its clients.
Related Recommendations (1)
R4
Work with the Ventura County Transportation Commission to improve client access to services. Commendations The Children and Families First Director and Commission of Proposition 10 and the newly appointed Allocation and Evaluation Oversight/Advisory Committee of the Tobacco Settlement money are to be congratulated for their respective efforts to reach out to all aspects of the County and to make sound decisions on the expenditure of their moneys. Responses Required Executive Director, Children and Families First Commission R-1 and 2 Chairman Allocation & Evaluation Oversight/Advisory Committee R-1, 2 and 3 44 Ventura County Chief Administrative Officer R-1, 2 and 3 Ventura County Health Care Agency Director R-1 and 3 Ventura County Auditor-Controller R-1 and 2 Ventura County Transportation Commission R-4 45
F23
The Commission’s Strategic Plan is available at its website: www.vcchildren.org.
No recommendations for this finding
F24
The Commission has an office and staff, but still is in its formative stages.
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
Active and ongoing monitoring of the allocation and effectiveness of the County’s Proposition 10 and Tobacco Settlement moneys should be conducted both internally by the various committees and commissions and externally by the CAO and Board of Supervisors and the Ventura County Grand Jury.
F25
Among organizations receiving grants are Easter Seals Tri-Counties, California, Ojai Unified School District, Ventura County Public Health, Interface Children Family Services, Ventura County Superintendent of Schools, Ventura United School District, Santa Paula Elementary School District, Clinicas del Camino Real, Inc. {Oxnard}, and Simi Valley Hospital and Health Care Services. The Jury during its study of The National Tobacco Settlement and the Rolling 5-Year Strategic Tobacco Settlement Allocation Plan established the following:
No recommendations for this finding
Conclusions 2
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CL1 Page 9C-1. If, as hoped, tobacco use decreases with the increases in taxes on tobacco products, revenues received from such programs will decrease. The effects of Proposition 99, The Tobacco Tax and Health Promotion Act, support the theory of decreased usage. Thus, programs targeted at non-smoking related issues such as early childhood education need to be especially mindful to leverage funds to allow for declining revenue. The Director of the Children and Families First Commission is establish- ing a trust fund and working with other agencies to leverage funds. C-2. The Children and Families First Commission lists many of the County’s established agencies as the recipients of grant money. The Commission needs to conduct active outreach programs to incorporate residents of outlying communities such as Santa Paula, Fillmore and Piru into its services. 43
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CL2 Page 10Final Report 2000-2001 Ventura County Grand Jury C-3. Although the Children and Families First Commission is targeted at children 0 to 5 years of age and the Rolling 5-Year Strategic Tobacco Settlement Allocation Plan is aimed at public and private health care needs within the County, both programs involve large sums of money and are in their formative stages. Each program is attempting to build effective oversight into its structure in order to monitor the allocation of money and the effectiveness of the programs supported. When such large sums of money are involved, careful monitoring of the programs is critical. C-4. Transportation to services offered by the tobacco money programs is a problem for those in the County without access to their own vehicle, especially away from the urban centers. Both the Children and Families First Commission and the County’s rolling 5-Year Strategic Tobacco Settlement Allocation committees must address this issue. C-5. Ventura County has health care needs in both the public and private sectors and the electorate wants them both served by the Tobacco Settlement money.
Commendations 1
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CM1 Page 10The Children and Families First Director and Commission of Proposition 10 and the newly appointed Allocation and Evaluation Oversight/Advisory Committee of the Tobacco Settlement money are to be congratulated for their respective efforts to reach out to all aspects of the County and to make sound decisions on the expenditure of their moneys.
Agency Responses 3
Government agencies' official responses to this report's findings and recommendations. Click on a response to see the structured breakdown.
No Responses Found 2
Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.