Read the full story here. Philly.com
“Dan Epstein writes about the Communities Putting Prevention to Work grant program that potentially issued federal grants that were used to lobby for higher taxes.
“Since March 2010, $230 million in federal grant money has been given to 30 states under the Communities Putting Prevention to Work initiative. Nearly $400 million more has been dedicated to the initiative for fiscal 2012. The grants were designed to educate the public on the hazards of tobacco use and obesity.
Instead of using the grant money to teach and inform citizens about those risks, though, some state and local governments may have wrongly spent it on lobbying, using federal tax dollars to influence policymakers and promote legislation and new taxes, according to an investigation by Cause of Action.”
