Fiscal Summary

Decrease State Revenue – Net Impact – $943,100/FY27-28 $2,829,300/FY28-29 Exceeds $4,715,500/FY29-30 and Subsequent Years Decrease Local Revenue – Net Impact – $174,000/FY27-28 $521,800/FY28-29 Exceeds $869,700/FY29-30 and Subsequent Years

Bill Summary

SENDING MINORS AND THOSE UNDER 21 TO PURCHASE TOBACCO PRODUCTS

Present law establishes that it is not a violation of state laws prohibiting the use of or sale to a minor or person under 21, for a law enforcement officer to use or send a person under 21 to purchase smoking material, smoking paraphernalia, any smokeless tobacco product, alcohol, or illegal drugs if the officer has obtained the prior written approval of the minor's parent or legal guardian or the person if 18 or older. This bill removes smokeless tobacco products from this provision.

Present law establishes that it is not a violation of state laws prohibiting the use, possession, or sales of alcohol, beer, lottery tickets, tobacco products, smokeless tobacco, or smoking material or paraphernalia to a minor or person under 21, for a merchant in the business of selling alcohol, beer, lottery tickets, tobacco products, smokeless tobacco or smoking material or paraphernalia, to use or send a minor, or in the case of alcohol, beer, tobacco products, smokeless tobacco, or smoking material or paraphernalia, a person under 21, to purchase any such product for the purpose of aiding in the enforcement of laws and policies prohibiting sales by the merchant at the merchant's place of business and preventing sales of such products to or use by individuals under age from occurring. This bill removes smokeless tobacco and tobacco products from this provision, as well as beer in the case of a person under 21.

This bill establishes that it is not a violation of state law prohibiting the use, possession, or sales of tobacco products, including smokeless tobacco, to a person who was born on or after January 1, 2007, to use or send a person who was born on or after January 1, 2007, to purchase any such product for the purpose of aiding in the enforcement of laws and policies prohibiting sales by the merchant at the merchant's place of business and preventing sales of such products to or use by individuals under age from occurring.

PRETENDING TO BE OF AGE IS PROHIBITED

Present law establishes that in order to use a minor, in the case of alcohol, beer, tobacco products, smokeless tobacco, or smoking material or paraphernalia, a person under 21 is prohibited from disguising the person's appearance or making statements to trick an employee and is required to be truthful with the employee, be photographed to create a record of the person's appearance, and produce identification if requested.

In the case of alcohol, beer, or smoking material or paraphernalia, this bill prohibits a person under 21 from disguising their appearance or making misleading statements. Such a person must be truthful with the employee, be photographed to create a record of the person's appearance, and produce identification if requested. This bill places the same prohibition and requirements on a person born on or after January 1, 2007, in the case of tobacco products, including smokeless tobacco.

SALE OR DISTRIBUTION TO UNDERAGE PERSONS UNLAWFUL

Present law establishes that it is unlawful for a person to sell or distribute any tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product to another person who is under 21 or to purchase smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product on behalf of such person under 21. This bill removes tobacco from this provision.

Present law establishes that it is unlawful for any person to persuade, entice, send, or assist a person under 21 to purchase, acquire, receive, or attempt to purchase, acquire, or receive a tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product. This provision does not preclude law enforcement efforts involving (i) the use of a minor if the minor's parent or legal guardian has consented to this action; or (ii) the use of an individual under 21 who is not a minor if the individual has consented to this action. This bill removes tobacco from this provision.

This bill prohibits a person from persuading, enticing, sending, or assisting a person under 21 or who was born after January 1, 2007, to purchase, acquire, receive, or attempt to purchase, acquire, ore receive a tobacco product unless an exception applies.

Present law requires a person engaged in the sale or distribution of tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product to demand proof of age from a prospective purchaser or recipient if an ordinary person would conclude on the basis of appearance that the prospective purchaser or recipient may be under 30. In the case of distribution by mail, the distributor of tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product must obtain from the addressee an affirmative statement that the person is 21 or older, and must inform the recipient that the person is strictly prohibited from distributing any tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product to any person under 21.

This bill removes tobacco from the above provision and requires a person engaged in the sale or distribution of tobacco to demand proof of age from a prospective purchaser or recipient. In the case of distribution by mail, the distributor of tobacco must obtain from the addressee an affirmative statement that the person is 21 or older, and must inform the recipient that the person is strictly prohibited from distributing any tobacco to a person under 21 who was born on or after January 1, 2007.

This bill prohibits selling or distributing a tobacco product to a person under 21 or born after January 1, 2007, unless (i) the tobacco products are sold and consumed within a hookah lounge, cigar bar, or similar entity that sells tobacco products for the consumption of such products only on site to a person 21 or older; or (ii) an establishment sells a shisha tobacco product, vapor product that contains tobacco, or cigar to a person 21 or older.

PROHIBITED PURCHASES OR POSSESSION BY UNDERAGE PERSONS

Under present law, it is unlawful for a person under 21 to possess either a tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product, to purchase or accept receipt of either product, or to present or offer to any person any purported proof of age that is false, fraudulent, or not actually that person's own for the purpose of purchasing or receiving any tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product. This bill removes tobacco from this provision.

This bill prohibits a person under 21 or born on or after January 1, 2007, from possessing a tobacco product, purchasing or accepting receipt of the product, or presenting or offering to a person any purported proof of age that is false, fraudulent, or not actually that person's own for the purpose of purchasing or receiving any tobacco product.

Present law establishes that it is not unlawful for a person under 21 to handle or transport:

(1) Tobacco, tobacco products, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products as a part of and in the course of the person's employment; if the person is under the supervision of another employee who is at least 21; or

(2) Tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products as part of an educational project that has been developed by the person for entry and display at an agricultural fair or other agricultural competition or event. This bill removes tobacco from this provision.

This bill establishes that it is not unlawful for a person under 21 or born on or after January 1, 2007 to handle or transport (i) tobacco or tobacco products as a part of and in the course of the person's employment if the person is under the supervision of another employee who is at least 21; or (ii) tobacco or tobacco products as part of an educational project that has been developed by the person for entry and display at an agricultural fair or other agricultural competition or event.

Under present law, a person under 21 is not prohibited from handling or transporting tobacco or hemp as part of and in the course of the person's involvement in any aspect of the agricultural production or storage of tobacco or hemp, the sale of raw tobacco or hemp at market or the transportation of raw tobacco or hemp to a processing facility. This bill clarifies that a person under 21 may handle or transport hemp, and a person born on or after January 1, 2007, may handle or transport tobacco.

REQUIRED POSTINGS

Present law requires every person who sells tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products at retail to post conspicuously and keep so posted at the place of business a sign that meets certain criteria specified in statute and notifies customers that "STATE LAW STRICTLY PROHIBITS THE SALE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS, VAPOR PRODUCTS, SMOKELESS NICOTINE PRODUCTS, OR SMOKING PARAPHERNALIA TO PERSONS UNDER THE AGE of 21. PROOF OF AGE MAY BE REQUIRED."

This bill removes tobacco from the above provision and instead requires such persons to post conspicuously and keep so posted at the place of business a sign that meets the same criteria specified in statute and notifies customers that "STATE LAW STRICTLY PROHIBITS THE SALE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS TO PERSONS UNDER THE AGE OF 21 OR BORN ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 2007. PROOF OF AGE MAY BE REQUIRED."

This bill establishes that unless another notice is required by federal law, the notices required under this heading are the only notices regarding smoking hemp, vapor products, smokeless nicotine products, or tobacco required to be posted or maintained in any store that sells smoking hemp, vapor products, smokeless nicotine products, or tobacco at retail.

VENDING MACHINE SALES

Under present law, it is unlawful for any person to sell tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products through a vending machine unless the vending machine is located in any of the following locations:

(1) In areas of factories, businesses, offices, or other places that are not open to the public;

(2) In places that are open to the public but to which persons under 21 are denied access;

(3) In places where alcoholic beverages are sold for consumption on the premises, but only if the vending machine is under the continuous supervision of the owner or lessee of the premises or an employee of the owner or lessee of the premises, and is inaccessible to the public when the establishment is closed; and

(4) In other places, but only if the machine is under the continuous supervision of the owner or lessee of the premises or an employee of the owner or lessee of the premises, or the machine can be operated only by the use of a token purchased from the owner or lessee of the premises or an employee of the owner or lessee of the premises prior to each purchase, and is inaccessible to the public when the establishment is closed.

This bill removes tobacco from this provision and prohibits a person from selling tobacco through a vending machine.

ENFORCEMENT - INSPECTIONS - REPORTING - CIVIL PENALTIES

Present law requires the department of agriculture to enforce state law relative to prevention of youth access to tobacco, smoking hemp, and vapor products in a manner that may be reasonably expected to reduce the extent to which tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products are sold or distributed to persons under 21, and must conduct random, unannounced inspections at locations where tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products are sold or distributed to ensure compliance with state law.

This bill clarifies that the department of agriculture must enforce state law in a manner that may reasonably be expected to reduce the extent to which tobacco products are sold or distributed to persons under 21 or born on or after January 1, 2007. This bill requires the department of agriculture to conduct random, unannounced inspections at locations where smoking hemp, vapor products, smokeless nicotine products, or tobacco are sold or distributed to ensure compliance with state law.

Present law establishes that a person who demanded, was shown, and reasonably relied upon proof of age is not liable for a civil penalty for a violation of state law relative to sale or distribution to underage person or vending machine sales. In the case of distribution of any tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product by mail, a person who obtained a statement from the addressee that the addressee is at least 21 is not liable for a civil penalty so long as that distributor of the tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product informed the addressee that state law prohibits the distribution of tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, and smokeless nicotine products to a person under 21.

This bill clarifies that in the case of distribution of any tobacco product by mail, a person who obtained a statement from the addressee that the addressee is at least 21 and was born before January 1, 2007, is not liable for a civil penalty so long as that distributor of the tobacco product informed the addressee that state law prohibits the distribution of tobacco products to a person under 21 or born on or after January 1, 2007.

Present law authorizes the commissioner of agriculture to assess a civil penalty, when required, against any person or persons determined by the commissioner to be responsible, in whole or in part, for contributing to or causing a violation to occur, including the owner, manager or employee of a store at which any tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor product, or smokeless nicotine product is sold at retail, the owner, manager or employee of an establishment in which a vending machine selling tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products is located, and a company or any of its employees engaged in the business of sampling. This bill removes references to tobacco from the present law.

Under present law, the owner or manager of a store that sells tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products at retail must provide training to the store's employees concerning the provisions of state law relative to preventing youth access to tobacco, smoking hemp, and vapor products. As a part of this training, each employee must, prior to selling tobacco, smoking hemp, vapor products, or smokeless nicotine products at retail, sign a statement specified in statute. This bill revises the statement to be signed in cases of tobacco sales to read as follows:

I understand that state law prohibits the sale of tobacco to persons under 21 or who were born on or after January 1, 2007. I promise to obey this law, and I understand that monetary or criminal penalties may be imposed on me if I violate this law.

APPLICABILITY

This bill takes effect on January 1, 2025.