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Kentucky senator proposes stricter underage tobacco use enforcement legislation

pixabay.com

Kentucky Senator Jimmy Higdon plans to propose new legislation that will strengthen enforcement on underage tobacco use, both for retailers and for underage consumers.

Higdon said House Bill 11, an underage vaping enforcement statute passed last year, isn’t doing the job.

“It’s really not that effective. That piece of legislation has no teeth, no real consequences for those who do not comply, and a free pass for the bad actors,” said Higdon.

Higdon said that when House Bill 11 was on the Senate floor, he filed amendments to the legislation that would license every tobacco retailer in Kentucky. This would allow the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board to require compliance checks and provide enforcement.

His proposed legislation would do just that. It would also allow officers to enter an inspected premises without a warrant and confiscate evidence of criminal activity. The bill would enforce any resulting fines by not allowing retailers to renew their license until any dues they owe have been paid.

House Bill 142 was also passed last year. The legislation bans tobacco products on school property and allows schools to discipline students who are caught with those products on campus. Higdon said his proposal would expand those rules.

“That’s a missing piece that we have now. We have a piece that regulates them on school property. This legislation would give some regulation of authority off of school property,” said Higdon.

The senator’s proposed legislation would give local police and court systems the authority to prosecute underage people for possession of tobacco products. Consumers could be fined, given community service, or ordered to attend a counseling program.