Youth Access Prevention

Specific Legislative Provisions
State legislatures should pass legislation that would help prevent youth access to tobacco products. Specifically this legislation should:

• Require every individual store or retail establishment engaged in the sale of tobacco products to have a license;
  
  
• Require all tobacco product purchases to be clerk-assisted or conducted in an otherwise non-self-service environment to include the restriction of vending-machine sales of tobacco products (except in certain specialty tobacco retail establishments);
  
  
• Prohibit anyone from purchasing tobacco products for, or distributing tobacco products to, a minor;
  
  
• Prohibit the purchase or possession of tobacco products by minors or the use of false identification by a minor during an attempt to purchase tobacco products;
  
  
• Penalize clerks and retailers for selling tobacco products to a minor, but allow for an affirmative defense for those employers who have an education and training program in place in order to prevent such sales;
  
  
• Require minimum-age-to-purchase signage at retail stores and require valid proof of age for all tobacco product purchases;
  
  
• Prohibit out-of-package sales of tobacco products; and
  
  
• Require a single designated agency to collect and report data about youth access prevention enforcement activities at the state level

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