WASHINGTON -- The percentage of U.S. retailers that sold tobacco to underage customers during unannounced stings last year dropped to the lowest rate in a decade, according to a recent government report cited by The Free-Lance Star.
For the past 10 years, the U.S. Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has overseen a national program to prevent tobacco sales to people under the age of 18. The department has requirements that all 50 states and the District of Columbia must follow or risk losing federal grants for substance [image-nocss] abuse prevention and treatment. States enforce the laws through annual random inspections of vending machines and stores selling tobacco. The results are reported to SAMHSA, which has a goal that 20% of retailers or less violate tobacco laws.
For the first time since the inspection program started in 1996, every state met the 20% target last year, the report said. About 10.9% of tested retailers violated the underage sales laws last year, down from 17.5% in 2001 and 40.1% in 1997.
This report on decreasing tobacco sales to minors shows state tobacco control efforts are working, SAMHSA Administrator Terry Cline said in a statement.
At 2.2%, Arkansas had the best compliance rate last year. Kansas' 19.2% rate was the highest, said the report.
Jeff Lenard, spokesperson for the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), was pleased with the results. He said current efforts of training clerks on underage sales laws will continue. While it's good news, we want to do better, Lenard told the newspaper. Any sale to a minor is one too many.
The We Card Program has been effective in stemming the illegal sales of tobacco, Mike O'Connor, president of the Virginia Petroleum, Convenience & Grocery Association (VPC&GA), told the paper.
We Card, a training program to lower the violation rate, started in 1995. Clerks learn to recognize real and fake IDs, O'Connor said. The logo is commonly displayed at sales registers.
Click here to view the full report, including the states' results.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.