The Stop Tobacco Sales to Youth Committee is proposing an ordinance that would require retailers in unincorporated areas of the county to obtain a license to sell tobacco products.

The committee believes this ordinance is much needed in this area. Existing laws and programs are not solving the problem of underage tobacco use, committee member Mark Loeser said.

“A strong tobacco retail licensing ordinance will help to keep tobacco out of our children's hands,” Loeser said. “We know from other communities who have worked on similar ordinances that this is an effective way of stopping sales to youth.”

In a recent investigation, 26 percent of tobacco retailers in unincorporated areas of the county sold to underage decoys. The ordinance would encourage retailers to take tobacco sales seriously. The punishment they could receive for selling tobacco to minors would be motivation for them to be careful. Tobacco is the only addictive product that can be sold without a license.

It is sold without a license in Turlock. A survey conducted in June indicated that 38 percent of stores in Turlock have sold to underage youth. The statewide average is between 12 and 13 percent.

“We are starting at the county level and we will go city by city to propose the ordinance as well,” Loeser said.

Each city within the county would have to adopt a separate ordinance, he said.

The committee is hoping the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors will have a hearing about the ordinance in October. The public will be able to comment about the proposal at the hearing, he said.

“At this point the committee believes that it has the support of some of the board members,” Loeser said.

The committee would like the ordinance to be enacted by January 1, 2005.

The license fee would cost stores $200 every year. The Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department would enforce the ordinance by doing undercover decoy stings at participating stores.

A violating location would have its license suspended for 30 days. For first time violators, a tobacco education training class may be taken instead of suspension. The license is suspended for 30 days for second-time offenders. If a store violates the ordinance more than twice, the license would be revoked for one year. If it’s violated again, the license is revoked for five years.

Laura Cook is the crime & courts reporter for the Turlock Journal. She may be reached at 634-9141 or laurac@turlockjournal.com.