US: Tobacco Sales to Minors down in 2014

Source from:  Lincoln Journal Star 01/16/2015

Tobacco sales to minors at Lincoln retailers decreased in 2014, city officials said Tuesday.

In 302 compliance checks by youth volunteers to buy tobacco products, only 24, or 7.9 percent, resulted in a sale, according to a news release from the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department.

Nearly 13 percent of businesses sold tobacco to minors during compliance checks in 2013, the release said.

The compliance checks are conducted by the Lincoln Police Department, Lancaster County Sheriff's Office and the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department. Businesses that sell to minors receive citations.

Brian Baker, public health educator for the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department, said there were no repeat violators among the 24 businesses busted last year.

National research indicates that when sale rates in compliance checks are consistently below 10 percent, children in those communities are less likely to use tobacco products, Baker said in a news release.

Baker cited recent Lancaster County Youth Risk Behavior Survey results showing that local youths who smoked cigarettes in the last 30 days decreased from 16.4 percent in 2011 to 13.3 percent in 2013.

In the county outside of Lincoln, two illegal sales were made in 36 attempts last year, according to Tobacco Free Lancaster County. Enditem