A group of 22 attorneys general is urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in supporting continuation of the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS).
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong on Friday led the bipartisan coalition of 22 states. The letter is submitted in response to a CDC invitation for public comment on continuation of the NYTS, which assesses smoking and vaping among middle and high school students.
“It is essential that attorneys general have continued access to data collected in the rigorous fashion employed by NYTS to inform our efforts as we work to reduce youth tobacco use,” the letter states.
Attorneys general from Arizona, California, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Puerto Rico also signed the letter.
“Tobacco control efforts have long been a bipartisan priority, particularly when those efforts concern our youth, and rightfully so,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta in a statement. “Unfortunately, the Trump Administration has taken several actions that threaten to undo the progress we have made, such as eliminating the Office on Smoking and Health at the CDC.”
The CDC notes that it intends to make revisions to the 2026-2028 NYTS, but has yet to identify specific proposed changes, the California attorney general’s office said in a statement.
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