Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act of 1965

Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act of 1965

The Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act of 1965 required a health warning label on all cigarette packs, reading: “Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health”. (Initially, the Federal Trade Commission wanted the labels to read: “Cigarette smoking is dangerous to health and may cause death from cancer and other diseases”.) The health warning did not have to be featured in advertising. The bill also mandated a yearly report on cigarette advertising and the impact of smoking on health. The bill also prevented states or federal regulators from passing more stringent legislation for four years. At the time health groups denounced the bill because it didn’t go far enough, but the act firmly established the federal government’s interest in regulating tobacco use (and notified the nation that Washington considered smoking a real hazard).