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                                                           Memorandum <br />  <br />To: Mayor and Council <br />From: City Clerk Michele Lindau <br />Date: December 28, 2021 for the City Council Meeting on January 3, 2022 <br />Re: Amendments to Tobacco Ordinance to Align with Tobacco 21 Laws and State Statute <br /> <br /> <br />BACKGROUND <br />A new state law reinforces a Federal law enacted December, 2019, raising the minimum tobacco <br />sales age from 18 to 21. In addition, the law provides several changes in penalties related to the <br />sale of tobacco products to people under 21 and the process by which a city enforces tobacco <br />licensing requirements. Cities that license tobacco retailers must comply with the new law and <br />adjust their enforcement practices accordingly. The new state law became effective Aug. 1, <br />2020. <br />Key provisions of the law are listed below along with proposed ordinance changes to address <br />them. <br /> Raise the minimum sales age to 21. <br />The ordinance currently prohibits sales to minors as defined as persons under the age of 18. <br />Proposed revisions to the ordinance would raise the minimum age to purchase to 21 years. <br /> Remove penalties for the underage possession, purchase, and use of tobacco products. <br />The current tobacco ordinance deems it a misdemeanor for possession, use or procurement of <br />tobacco products by minors. Washington County Sheriff’s Office has been addressing underage <br />use through the Youth Service Bureau programs. State law has removed the penalties citing no <br />strong evidence to support an assertion that penalties are effective in significantly reducing youth <br />smoking. Furthermore, many advocates are concerned that these penalties open the door to <br />selective enforcement against youth from certain racial, ethnic, and socio-economic groups. It is <br />recommended that jurisdictions that currently have penalties no longer aligning with state law <br />consider removing those penalties from their ordinance. <br /> <br />Staff is recommending alternative penalties be included in the ordinance where law enforcement <br />and court system representatives consult, as applicable, with interested persons, including but not <br />limited to parents, guardians, educators, and persons under the age of 21 years, to develop <br />alternative civil penalties that would include tobacco-free education programs, community <br />service, court diversion programs, and tobacco cessation programs, and for persons under the age <br />of 18 years, notice to schools and to parents or guardians. <br /> <br />