Philip Morris Offers Deal on Smoking Curbs for the Young

WASHINGTON — Facing mounting criticism that it illegally markets cigarettes to young people, the nation’s largest tobacco company on Wednesday proposed sweeping federal legislation to curb underage smoking--but only if the Clinton administration drops its effort to regulate nicotine as a drug.

The quid pro quo proposal, outlined by executives of Philip Morris USA at a hastily called news conference in New York, accedes to a number of provisions in--and in some cases goes beyond--a Food and Drug Administration plan that the tobacco industry is now fighting in court.

But the proposal was greeted with considerable skepticism. An FDA official said it “falls short,” and an industry critic called it a politically “shrewd” move that would still allow tobacco companies to market their products to young people.

Philip Morris, maker of Marlboro--the favored brand of more than half of all young people who smoke--said its proposal would ban vending machine sales of cigarettes, prohibit tobacco billboards within 1,000 feet of schools and curtail, but not eliminate, industry sponsorship of some sporting events.

It would put an end to controversial T-shirt and ball cap promotions and prohibit cigarette manufacturers from paying for “product placement” in films and television shows. But it would not put any money into educational efforts, as the FDA has suggested, nor would it require cigarette manufacturers to replace their alluring ads with dull black-and-white “tombstone” type.

“The time for talk has ended,” said company spokesman Steven Parrish, who was joined in his statement by the executive vice president of U.S. Tobacco, the nation’s largest manufacturer of smokeless tobacco. “The time has come to . . . [bring] people together to attack the problem of underage use of tobacco.”

That is not likely to happen, however. The White House, which has said in the past that it would accept legislation instead of FDA regulation as a way to curtail youth smoking, said it was “somewhat encouraged and slightly disappointed” by the Philip Morris plan. It praised the company for “clearly trying to be a good corporate citizen.”

FDA officials were not so sanguine. Mitch Zeller, who coordinates the agency’s tobacco control policy, said the agency expects any legislation to be as “comprehensive and effective” as the proposed FDA rules.

“That’s the bottom line,” he said. “The Philip Morris proposal falls short of this mark.”

The tobacco industry has a history of appearing to cave in to government regulation at the last minute. In the late 1960s, for instance, it voluntarily agreed to a ban on television advertising, only to pour millions into additional print ads.

Several industry critics complained that the plan cleverly responds to President Clinton’s public statements about reducing youth access to tobacco, while ensuring that the companies can continue to market their products to young people, who represent the future of their business.

“The Marlboro man and Joe Camel live to speak to America’s kids,” said Michael Pertschuk, former chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and a longtime tobacco foe. “Its a very, very shrewd political move.”

Stanton Glantz, an anti-tobacco activist who teaches at UC San Francisco, said, “I think these are rules with which the industry could live quite nicely and will probably have the effect of securing Philip Morris’ dominance in the kiddie market by making it harder for [R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., the maker of Camel] to make inroads into the Marlboro man.”

Where the plan goes from here is unclear. It is possible that tobacco supporters in Congress will introduce the legislation suggested by Philip Morris, setting the stage for an election-year battle on the issue.

Whether the plan would draw support from other tobacco companies is unknown; Reynolds, the nation’s second-largest cigarette manufacturer, said it would reserve comment on the plan until it could learn more about it.

Wednesday’s announcement comes just two days after a Supreme Court ruling that bolsters the free-speech rights of advertisers, a ruling that has been widely interpreted as limiting the administration’s ability to restrict cigarette advertising.

Parrish, the Philip Morris executive, cited that decision at the news conference, saying that the company proposal is “much more focused” than the FDA’s plan and more likely to withstand a court challenge. FDA officials, however, maintained that their regulations are already narrow enough to meet the Supreme Court’s requirements.

Philip Morris stock slipped 12.5 cents to $91 a share on the New York Stock Exchange.