Tobacco Sales To Youth Presented to { } by { } Date

Tobacco is the only deadly and addictive product that can be sold without a license Why Require A License To Sell Tobacco?

We don’t know who is selling tobacco in our community ?

Why Require A License To Sell Tobacco?

Stores are held accountable for illegal sales of alcohol & failure to comply with labor, environmental, zoning and health & safety laws. Laws that leave stores free of consequences for illegal tobacco sales are an anomaly. In virtually every other area, society holds businesses accountable for their employees’ compliance with the law. No Sale: Youth, Tobacco and Responsible Retailing, Working Group of State Attorneys General

“Non-traditional” Tobacco Retailers Non-traditional tobacco retailers include donut shops, deli/meat/produce markets and discount/gift stores Statewide, non-traditional retailers sold tobacco illegally to youths 30% or more of the time Without licensing, these stores operate under the veil of scrutiny for the most part Youth Purchase Survey, California Department of Health Services, Tobacco Control Section, July 2002.

Why Require A License To Sell Tobacco? A license can be used to enforce all tobacco control laws

Why Require A License To Sell Tobacco? Merchant education and voluntary compliance alone don’t work to curb illegal sales Fines alone don’t deter merchants from selling It highlights the importance of keeping tobacco away from youth

Requires retailers to get a license to sell tobacco products Provides grounds for fines, suspension or revocation Details the enforcement process, e.g. four test-buys/retailer/year A Strong Retail Tobacco License

Requires fees sufficient to cover the cost of administration and enforcement Suspends or revokes license for violating any tobacco control law

32 California Cities/Counties License Tobacco Retailers Most are small to medium size cities in Bay Area –Berkeley, Redwood City, Contra Costa/San Mateo counties, East Palo Alto, Richmond A few in Southern California –Santa Barbara County –San Fernando, Rancho Mirage, Goleta, One big city, Los Angeles, requires tobacco retailers to get a permit San Francisco just beginning their campaign As of February 2003

Why Now? Increasing percentage of California retailers selling tobacco to youth % in % in % in 2002 Youth Purchase Survey, California Department of Health Services, Tobacco Control Section, July 2002.

Illegal Sales Rate Triggers Penalties If more than 20% of retailers sell tobacco to minors, federal law may withhold up to $100 million from California’s Federal Block grant for alcohol and drug programs { My County Name } loses {$ }

Tobacco Retailers in {My County/City}Sell To Youth In {Date} the rate of sales of tobacco to youths was { } Enforcement doesn’t concentrate on “non- traditional” retailers where problem is greatest

Why Focus Locally? · Significant and cutting edge policy work in California is driven by local policy efforts · Local policy success provides the critical mass and power needed to obtain strong statewide policies · State legislation may not address public health provisions such as suspension or revocation for tobacco sales to minors or funding for enforcing tobacco sales to minors laws

Support for Licensing 80% of California adults think a license should be required to sell tobacco. 69% of key opinion leaders believe a business should be licensed to sell tobacco. 96% of California adults agree that communities should enforce laws to prevent selling cigarettes to minors. 93% of KOL believe that community leaders should take a public stand against businesses that repeatedly sell tobacco to minors. California Adult Tobacco Survey, 2001;Harder + Community Research ALA Key Opinion Leader Survey