Brief (1)
The bill would amend existing law regarding penalties for selling cigarettes and tobacco products to persons who are under 18 years of age. Under existing law, the Secretary of Revenue is authorized to impose a civil fine of not more than $1,000 for such violations. The bill would add a provision stating that a violation of the act occurring more than three years after the most recent violation would be considered a first violation.
Background
At the hearing before the House Committee on Federal and State Affairs, Representative Flower, the sponsor of the bill, said that she introduced the bill to remedy a situation brought to her attention by a constituent. The constituent also provided testimony to the Committee. That testimony presented the possibility that under a graduated penalty structure, individual violations of the law separated by many years of compliance could ultimately result in revocation of a retailer's license. (Existing law does not require a graduated penalty structure, but the Secretary is not prohibited from developing one.) The representative of the Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association also presented testimony in support of the bill. No opponents to the bill presented testimony to the House Committee.
The House Committee amended the bill to delete language that would have specifically authorized the Secretary to impose graduated fines for the second and subsequent violations within a three-year period. The House Committee's amendment retained, but clarified, the language regarding violations separated by three or more years.
The Division of the Budget's fiscal note for the bill states that enactment would not increase state revenues. The fiscal note also states that the Department of Revenue currently uses a graduated fine system for violations of the law, but tracks each licensee's violations continuously.
1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/bill_search.html