Report Card
Enforcement
California has a statewide Tobacco Retail License that renews annually to fund enforcement of MLSA laws. Age verification is required for anyone that appears to be under 21 years of age; although it would be best to require ID verification for anyone that appears to be under 30 years of age. Penalties are placed on the retailer, clerk, or “Person,” but the penalty schedule is specific to retailers and could lead to suspension or revocation of their license. California’s State Dept of Public Health is the designated enforcing agency with no mandate for annual checks which could lead to poor retailer compliance.
Tobacco Retail License
- Comprehensive statewide Tobacco Retail License covering all tobacco products
- Multiple Tobacco Retail Licenses that cover all tobacco products
- Tobacco Retail License only covers cigarettes and NOT e-cigarettes
- No statewide Tobacco Retail License
Preemption
- No preemption
- Preempted from raising the sales age
- Preempted from creating a Tobacco Retail License
High School Vaping Rate
8.2%
Tobacco Prevention vs. Industry Marketing
$1 : $2
California spends $251.3M in tobacco prevention efforts and the tobacco industry spends $446.7M in marketing. For every $1 spent in prevention, Big Tobacco spends $2 in marketing.