San Luis Obispo County Tobacco Control Program

1
San Luis Obispo County Tobacco Control Program

• Tobacco Retail Licensing in the City of San Luis
  Obispo
• 2003

2
Workplan Objective

• By June 30, 2004, a minimum of 2 jurisdictions
  within San Luis Obispo County will adopt tobacco
  retail licensing policies.
• The Intervention Plan included activities under
  all of the following categories.
• Community Education Activities
• Coordination/Collaboration Activities
• Educational Material Development
• Media Activities
• Policy Activities

3
Community Education Activities

• Educate coalition members with 1-2 presentations
  about the proposed tobacco retail license policy.
• Meet with Public Health Agency Director/Health
  Officer as well as City/County Administrator to
  determine support for the licensing policy.
• Develop information packet that includes a copy
  of the new or revised law(s), any necessary
  signage and educational brochure explaining the
  new or revised laws.

4
Coordination/Collaboration Activities

• Collaborate with TALC regarding any new tobacco
  control laws, strategies and policy development.
• Collaborate and coordinate with SLO Tobacco
  Control Coalition, SLO County youth coalitions,
  ACS, ALA, AHA to assist in finding a champion
  to promote tobacco retail licensing.

5
Educational Materials Development

• Coordinate with TECC to develop educational
  packet for distribution to city leaders,
  officials, and policy makers in selected
  jurisdictions.
• Important information included
• Benefits of tobacco retail licensing
• Youth purchase survey data
• Enforcement and compliance information
• Sample Policy

6
Policy Activities

• Conduct a minimum of one youth purchase survey or
  tobacco sting in selected jurisdictions.
• Through 1-2 face-to-face meetings, provide 4-6
  hours of technical assistance to policy makers
  about tobacco retail licensing.
• Recruit adult and youth coalition members to
  attend city council or board of supervisor
  meetings.

7
Media Activities

• Publicize stores who do and dont sell in 1-2
  press releases.
• Publicize enactment of the new policy with a
  minimum of 1 press release in each jurisdiction.

8
Launching The Objective

• Two Critical Elements
• 1. Holes or weaknesses of other licensing
• ordinances.
• 2. Enforcement issues

9
Launching The Objective

• Research
• Staff researched most of the licensing ordinances
  that had passed and made calls to counties to
  learn about challenges, barriers, suggestions,
  tips and most of all who had the most
  comprehensive ordinance.

10
Launching The Objective

• What we learned from our research!
• Chose Berkeley's ordinance as a model. To date,
  they had the most comprehensive ordinance which
  was concurred by TALC.
• The Missing Component ENFORCEMENT

11
Development of the Ordinance

• Used Berkeley's ordinance as a template and
  worked extensively with TALC to include pertinent
  language.
• Enforcement language.
• Enforcement being one of the key ingredients
  to
• an effective ordinance.
• Included dollar amount that would go to the PD
  
• to conduct the sting operations.
• How many stings per year and how many
  locations
• Penalties for noncompliance

12
Enforcement

• TCP Staff met with police chief.
• TCP Staff assured the chief that we would
  collaborate on an ongoing basis to provide the
  police department with any help or support that
  we could. (e.g. researching preliminary
  enforcement costs, providing and training youth
  to do the stings, and assisting with any
  notification to the retail locations).

13
Objective in Motion

• Sting operation conducted in November 2002
• Decided to move forward with this objective
  earlier than planned based on the November sting
  (52 noncompliance).
• Selected a champion.
• Preliminary education was done with council
  member champion and city staff prior to council
  meeting. Very important they understand the issue.

14
Objective in Motion

• Coalition suggested the city adopt a licensing
  policy during public comment at a council
  meeting.
• The council champion supported the suggestions of
  the coalition and recommended city staff
  research ways the youth access problem could be
  addressed, including licensing. All 5 council
  members concurred.

15
Objective in Motion

• This is where Tobacco Control staff stepped in.
• Implemented our research
• Chose Berkeleys ordinance as a model.

16
Objective in Motion

• Developed model. Worked very closely with Randy
  Kline from TALC.
• Developed education packet which was distributed
  by coalition to all council members, city
  attorney, city administration and the chief of
  police. Items included list of other counties
  with licensing, newspaper article regarding the
  sting, sample ordinance, pros/cons, county vs.
  state stats, etc.

17
Objective in Motion

• TCP staff met with city attorney and city staff
  numerous times.
• Purpose
• -Get feedback
• -Assist them with research
• -Educate them about licensing and how it could
  be a
• reasonable solution to the youth
  access problem in
• TCP Staff provided the model, the justification
  for such an ordinance, statistical data that
  supported licensing, etc.

18
Objective in Motion

• TCP staff provided city staff with cost/revenue
  scenarios to assist them in determining the
  licensing fee.
• Details of the scenarios accessible on the STORE
  website.

19
Objective in Motion

• City Council Meetings
• Took 3 meetings for the ordinance to pass.
• Several issues were explored including signage,
  conditional use permits and licensing.
• TCP staff and Coalition focused on licensing,
  which from earlier meetings, was our best chance
  of success and our primary goal.

20
Summary

• Did our homework.
• Prepared education packages that were easy to
  understand but complete.
• Proposed a very comprehensive ordinance that
  would provide for enforcement.
• Provided help to city staff regarding development
  and research.
• Pledged continued support.