Chapter 1 
In short, there was no clear consensus as to specific action the 
Commission could (or should) take to eliminate the limitations of the 
test method. At the same time, abandoning the testing system without 
instituting another method of tar testing would have been premature 
because then-current epidemiological evidence suggested that there had 
been a reduction in lung cancer deaths that might be attributable to declines 
in average tar levels that had occurred since the 1950's (U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services, 1981).^^ Accordingly, at that time the 
Commission made no changes to its cigarette test method to address 
compensatory smoking. 
In early 1987 the Commission decided to close its cigarette testing 
laboratory. The Commission found that closing the laboratory was necessary 
for several reasons, chiefly because the cost of the laboratory was significant 
and the Commission would have had to commit significant additional funds 
to continue its operation. The Commission also was persuaded that the 
same information could be obtained from other sources and that other 
means were available to verify the accuracy of industry testing results. In fact, 
the Commission's operation of a testing system for the industry at taxpayer 
expense was highly unusual. The common scenario is for the industry to 
conduct its own testing under Government-specified testing protocols. 
Since 1987 the Tobacco Institute Testing Laboratory (TITL) has continued 
to test most cigarettes, using the Commission's approved methodology; the 
companies report the results to the Commission pursuant to a compulsory 
request, and the Commission publishes the results. TITL keeps the 
Commission informed of proposed changes in the testing procedure and 
solicits Commission approval for all significant changes. TITL's work is 
regularly monitored by the Commission's contractor, Harold Pillsbury, Jr. 
(this volume), who has virtually unrestricted access to the laboratory and 
makes unannounced visits to inspect it and check the testing process. 
Mr. Pillsbury also checks the data for consistency from run to run and from 
year to year. Most industry members also have testing facilities; however, the 
numbers published by the Commission are primarily TITL numbers. (Generic 
and private label brands, as well as new cigarettes and cigarettes that are not 
widely available, are not tested by TITL.) 
Since the closing of its laboratory, the Commission has continued to 
review advertising for today's low- and ultralow-yield cigarettes for deceptive 
claims. In January 1995 the Commission approved a consent agreement with 
the American Tobacco Company, settling charges over advertisements that 
allegedly misused the Commission's tar and nicotine ratings by stating that 
consumers would get less tar by smoking 10 packs of Carlton brand cigarettes 
” In 1954 the tar yield of the sales-weighted average cigarette was 37 mg (U.S. Department of Health and Human 
Services, 1981). By 1981 cigarettes yielding 15 mg of tar or less had 56 percent of the domestic market (Federal 
Trade Commission, 1984). 
7 
