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November 20, 2025NYS Tobacco Control Marks 25 Years through Landmark Illumination
New York State landmarks will be illuminated in purple on Friday, November 21 to mark the 25th anniversary of the New York State Department of Health’s Tobacco Control Program. The observance follows the Great American Smokeout on November 20 and celebrates New York’s leadership in reducing tobacco-related disease and death and supporting New Yorkers who want to quit.
Illuminating 25 Years of Landmark Progress is a visual tribute to the program’s many state and local successes in saving New Yorkers’ lives and creating healthier, tobacco-free communities.
“From helping more than a million smokers quit through free coaching services to protecting New Yorkers from exposure to secondhand smoke at work and in their homes, the state’s comprehensive Tobacco Control Program and its community partners have a lot to be proud of,” said Jeanie Orr, Director of Capital District Tobacco-Free Communities. “But we are not resting on our laurels. There’s more work to be done as new tobacco products continue to attract and addict youth and make it harder for people to quit.”
Landmarks to be illuminated include: Empire State Plaza, Alfred E. Smith State Office Building, State Education Building, and Albany International Airport Gateway. See the full list of state and local landmark illuminations below.
Falling Smoking Rates Save Lives, Save Money The program was established via New York State Public Health Law in 2000, and since
then, it has maintained a comprehensive, effective public health infrastructure to prevent tobacco use, reduce exposure to secondhand smoke, and support New Yorkers in quitting tobacco. Key achievements include:
• Adult cigarette smoking down from 23% in 2000 to 9.3% in 2023.
• Youth cigarette smoking at 2% in 2024, with youth use of any form of tobacco continuing to fall.
• Strong statewide policies protecting New Yorkers, including the Clean Indoor Air Act, ending the sale of tobacco in pharmacies, and restrictions on flavored e-cigarettes.
• Many local standards to further protect New York’s communities, such as prohibiting smoking and e-cigarette use in multiunit housing and outdoor public spaces and reducing tobacco/e-cigarette marketing exposure to children.
• More than 1 million New Yorkers supported in quitting through the New York State Quitline.
The Tobacco Control Program has not only been effective at saving lives and improving health but has also proven to save the state money. For every $1 New York spends on tobacco control, an estimated $15 in health-care costs is saved.
The NYS TCP leads comprehensive efforts to reduce illness, disability and death related to commercial tobacco use and secondhand smoke exposure, and to alleviate social and economic inequities caused by tobacco marketing and use. Throughout the state, Tobacco Control Program partners have implemented these essential program components: The Advancing Tobacco-Free Communities (ATFC) program fosters environments supportive of policies that reinforce New York State’s tobacco- and vape-free norm. Capital District Tobacco-Free Communities is the local ATFC grantee partner. The Health Systems for a Tobacco-Free New York (HSTFNY) program works to reduce tobacco-related morbidity and mortality by partnering with healthcare systems to help their patients quit smoking. St. Peter’s Health Partners is the local HSTFNY grantee partner. The New York State Quitline provides free and confidential services that include information, tools, medications, quit coaching, and support by phone call, online chat, and text, available to all New Yorkers. The Quitline recently launched the new Drop the Vape program to help youth and teenagers overcome vaping and other tobacco products.
Great American Smokeout Supports Healthier, Smoke-Free Communities For almost 50 years, the American Cancer Society has hosted the annual Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday of November. The event offers an opportunity for people who smoke to commit to begin, or make plans to begin, healthy, smoke-free living.
Full List of landmarks being illuminated on 11/21:
• One World Trade Center
• Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge
• Kosciuszko Bridge
• The H. Carl McCall SUNY Building
• State Education Building
• Alfred E. Smith State Office Building
• Empire State Plaza
• State Fairgrounds – Main Gate & Expo Center
• Niagara Falls
• The “Franklin D. Roosevelt” Mid-Hudson Bridge
• Grand Central Terminal – Pershing Square Viaduct
• Albany International Airport Gateway
• MTA LIRR – East End Gateway at Penn Station
• Fairport Lift Bridge over the Erie Canal
• Moynihan Train Hall
• Roosevelt Island Lighthouse
