Problem/Objective: To examine the role of tobacco industry sponsorship among organizations that serve women and girls in New York State by determining the percentage that accept sponsorship by tobacco companies and that have written policies prohibiting the acceptance of these sponsorships.

Methods: A 15-minute survey to assess the role of the tobacco industry was administered to 300 out of all 968 organizations that serve women and girls in New York State, between October 2006 and March 2007.

Results: 24% of organizations reported that their leadership thinks it is acceptable for organizations to obtain money from tobacco companies, but only 12% percent of organizations reported that they have ever received such funds in the past. 5% of organizations reported having a written policy forbidding acceptance of funding from tobacco companies. These organizations did not differ according to size or annual budget, however organizations at the state and national level are more likely to have this policy and this is statistically significant at the 5% level. A third of organizations report that they would be open to considering adopting such a policy and 82% reported such policies are made at the local organizational level.

Conclusions: Many organizations are open to considering a policy, although very few have one in place. Future efforts include implementation and assessment of a ‘meet and greet' educational intervention designed to teach organizations about tobacco industry sponsorship and alternative sources for funds and other resources.