Tobacco Sales Rate to Minors

Each state is evaluated on its rate of tobacco sales to minors. All states have laws prohibiting the sale of tobacco to minors pursuant to a federal law known as the “Synar Amendment,” which they are required to enforce through random unannounced inspections of tobacco vendors.¹ A state’s effectiveness in enforcing its ban is measured by a “tobacco sales rate” that reflects the annual percentage of merchants who break the law by selling tobacco products to minors.²

What is the state’s sales rate of tobacco products to minors?

States receive a "meets policy" if they have a sales rate to minors below ten percent (the target set by health experts). States receive a "limited policy" if their sales rates are between ten and up to and including 20 precent (the target set by the federal government), and states receive a "weak policy" if they have a sales rate over 20 percent.

State	Strength of Policy	Change from 2007
Alabama	Limited Policy	Same
Alaska	Limited Policy	Same
Arizona	Meets Policy	Same
Arkansas	Meets Policy	Same
California	Limited Policy	Same
Colorado	Limited Policy	Worse
Connecticut	Limited Policy	Same
Delaware	Meets Policy	Same
District of Columbia	Meets Policy	Better
Florida	Meets Policy	Same
Georgia	Limited Policy	Same
Hawaii	Limited Policy	Worse
Idaho	Limited Policy	Same
Illinois	Limited Policy	Worse
Indiana	Limited Policy	Same
Iowa	Limited Policy	Same
Kansas	Limited Policy	Better
Kentucky	Meets Policy	Same
Louisiana	Meets Policy	Same
Maine	Meets Policy	Same
Maryland	Meets Policy	Same
Massachusetts	Limited Policy	Same
Michigan	Limited Policy	Same
Minnesota	Meets Policy	Better
Mississippi	Meets Policy	Same
Missouri	Meets Policy	Better
Montana	Meets Policy	Better
Nebraska	Limited Policy	Same
Nevada	Meets Policy	Better
New Hampshire	Limited Policy	Same
New Jersey	Limited Policy	Same
New Mexico	Meets Policy	Same
New York	Meets Policy	Same
North Carolina	Limited Policy	Same
North Dakota	Meets Policy	Same
Ohio	Limited Policy	Same
Oklahoma	Limited Policy	Same
Oregon	Limited Policy	Same
Pennsylvania	Meets Policy	Same
Rhode Island	Limited Policy	Worse
South Carolina	Limited Policy	Same
South Dakota	Meets Policy	Same
Tennessee	Limited Policy	Same
Texas	Limited Policy	Same
Utah	Meets Policy	Same
Vermont	Limited Policy	Same
Virginia	Limited Policy	Same
Washington	Limited Policy	Same
West Virginia	Limited Policy	Same
Wisconsin	Meets Policy	Same
Wyoming	Meets Policy	Same

Policy Indicator Counts

Meets Policy:

22

Limited Policy:

29

Weak Policy:

0

No/Harmful Policy:

0

Better:

6

Same:

41

Worse:

4

Data Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "FFY2009 Annual Synar Reports Youth Tobacco Sales," available at http://csap.samhsa.gov/tobacco/SynarReportFY2009.pdf, accessed September 10, 2010.

Footnotes

¹ In 1992, the federal government enacted a law known as the “Synar Amendment” to prohibit the sale of tobacco to minors. Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Agency Reorganization Act of 1992, 42 U.S.C. § 300x-26. In particular, the law required states by 1994 to pass laws banning the sale of tobacco to anyone under age 18 and to enforce these laws in a way that can reasonably be expected to restrict minors’ access, including random, unannounced inspections of retailers. Regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 1996 set as a goal a 20% annual sales rate to minors. 66 Fed. Reg. 46225-46227 (Sept. 4, 2001). As a way to ensure states’ compliance, the law requires the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to reduce states’ block grant funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration by a certain percentage for all subsequent years for which the state is out of compliance.

² Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Tobacco/SYNAR, "FFY 2008 Annual Synar Reports: Youth Tobacco Sales," 2008, available at http://prevention.samhsa.gov/tobacco/synarreportfy2008.pdf, accessed September 23, 2010.