The San Luis Obispo County Health Agency’s Tobacco Control Program in coordination with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office completed countywide tobacco sales compliance check operations earlier this month and stores in Arroyo Grande and Nipomo failed to comply.
The enforcement activity utilized underage decoys to regulate illegal sales of tobacco products to minors and resulted in four businesses selling to a decoy (a 7.84% illegal sales rate) in the unincorporated areas of the county. The illegal sales rate decreased from the last series of compliance operations. Tobacco compliance monitoring has been in effect since 2012. For comparison purposes, the program’s all-time high illegal sales rate is 25.93% with 5.17% as the all-time low sales rate to a decoy.
The compliance checks focused on unincorporated communities including but not limited to San Miguel, Santa Margarita, Cambria, Cayucos, Los Osos, Avila Beach, Oceano and Nipomo. The incorporated cities within the county did not participate in these sting operations. With the assistance of four local teens under 18-years-old, 51 tobacco retailer locations were visited throughout the county. Four clerks illegally sold tobacco to the decoy, accounting for the 7.84% sales rate. It is a misdemeanor to sell tobacco products to anyone under the age of 18. County ordinance also requires each tobacco retailer to be licensed. In this round of tobacco monitoring, enforcement action was taken against two businesses found to be unlicensed. The four stores that engaged in the illegal sale of tobacco products to a minor were as follows: Stores with no prior violations were: San Miguel Chevron, 998 K Street, San Miguel; and Ragged Point Inn, 19019 Highway 1, San Simeon. The following stores sustained their second violation: Shandon Market, 240 East Centre Street, Shandon; and Nipomo Smoke Shop, 110 S Mary Street, Unit 3, Nipomo.
The following stores were cited for engaging in the sales of tobacco products without a valid Tobacco Retailer business license: Los Berros Market, 2012 Los Berros Rd, Arroyo Grande; and Pier Liquor, 393 Pier Avenue, Oceano. Retail clerks with tobacco sales violations are issued a Notice to Appear and criminally prosecuted through Superior Court. By county ordinance, any business in violation is subject to administrative penalties including suspension of their ability to retail tobacco and a $1000 fine for each offense.
First and second offender business may elect to participate in a diversion program aimed at reducing licensing suspensions in exchange for onsite employee education and point-of-sale upgrades that use technology to prevent future sales.
The San Luis Obispo County Health Agency’s Tobacco Control Program offers retailer training on how to refuse a sale, methods to identify an underage buyer and instruction on properly reading an identification card or driver’s license. Members of the public or media with questions regarding the sale of tobacco products to minors are encouraged to call the Tobacco Control Program at (805) 781-5564.