| Variables | Definitions | |
| Demographic information | ||
| Education: high school degree or higher | Percentage of state population with high school degree or greater (source: US Census Bureau)21 | |
| Age | Median age of state population (source: US Census Bureau)21 | |
| Income | Median family income of state (source: US Census Bureau)21 | |
| Population | Square root of the total state population (source: US Census Bureau)21 | |
| Tobacco use | ||
| Prevalence | Percent of adults who smoke in state (source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)22 | |
| Consumption | Per capita cigarette pack sales (source: Tobacco Institute)23 | |
| Spending for tobacco control | ||
| Securitisation of MSA payments | Whether a state securitised any MSA payments (source: Health Policy Tracking Service)24 | |
| Per capita tobacco control expenditures | Total state spending on tobacco control divided by state population (sources: Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and US Census Bureau)15 21 | |
| Economic and political climate | ||
| Cigarette excise tax | Cigarette excise tax rate per pack (source: Tax Policy Center)25 | |
| Political ideology | Composite political ideology score (source: Medoff 1997)17 | |
| Political affiliation: governor’s political affiliation | Whether the governor is affiliated with a Republican or Democratic party (source: National Governors Association)26 | |
| Political affiliation: legislature’s political affiliation | Mean percentage Republican party of both the State Assembly and the State Legislature (source: The National Conference of State Legislatures)27 | |
| State budget deficit | State’s budget deficit as a percentage of the total state budget (source: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)28 | |
| Agriculture: tobacco production | Whether the state produces ⩾1 million pounds of tobacco annually (source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service)29 |
MSA, Master Settlement Agreement.