Virginia

Virginia has approximately 8,400 tobacco retailers, which the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) is authorized to inspect; it issues Class 2 misdemeanor citations for code violations. In 2018, the ABC and FDA were unable to reach consensus on the terms of the Tobacco Retail Compliance Inspection contract. As a result, the ABC did not enter into a contract with the FDA and stopped conducting their Synar enforcement inspections. The violation rate then rose by 66% from 10.1 to 16.8. Under normal circumstances, this would be problematic for keeping inspection violations under 20%, but it is particularly problematic given that Tobacco 21 went into effect on July 1, 2019, after the 2019 inspections has been conducted. Statewide, there are no required number of inspections in the current law. Further, there is no tobacco retail license required of Virginia retailers, so there is no comprehensive or current database of who is selling tobacco and nicotine products at retail. If Virginia fails to establish a licensing program and begin conducting compliance checks as soon as possible post-Covid restrictions, it risks losing substantial federal funds under the Synar Amendment. As it is now, enforcement throughout the state is insufficient to “reduce the extent to which tobacco products are available to individuals under [21],” as statute requires. Virginia also penalizes youth for purchase, use, and possession (PUP) of tobacco products.