For Immediate Release
July 17, 1998
Contact: Melissa Forsythe (502) 564-2611 or
Margaret Plattner ABC(502) 564-4850

Audio at 800-633-1019

Kentucky, Federal Partnership to Reduce Underage Smoking

   Frankfort: Kentucky’s getting more ammunition for its effort to reduce underage tobacco use, thanks to a new federal partnership Governor Paul Patton announced today. "No one wants children to smoke," Governor Patton said. "Kentucky already has one of the strongest laws in the country to try to curb teen tobacco use. Now we have more resources to limit access to tobacco products."

    The Kentucky Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), responsible for enforcing the states’ teen tobacco program, will receive $253,000 over the next year to enforce the federal regulation against retailers selling tobacco products to minors . The federal regulations to be enforced include carding anyone under the age of 27 and prohibiting the sale of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco to minors under 18.

    The federal funding will allow ABC to increase its unannounced compliance checks to 5,000 during the next twelve months. Presently, approximately 2,000 compliance checks are made annually in Kentucky. The compliance checks are made using minors, accompanied by an adult, attempting to purchase tobacco products in retail stores throughout the state.

    The information will be forwarded to federal authorities, who will issue a warning for the first violation to retailers found selling to the minors. These retailers will be subject to repeat inspections and possible fines of $250 for the second violation, $1,500 for the third violation, $5,000 for the fourth, and $10,000 for the fifth.

    Besides the federal dollars Kentucky receives, a federally funded "No ID, No Smokes" advertising/education program to help boost retailer compliance will begin in Kentucky . The month-long media campaign using radio, print and billboards starts August 3. Kentucky is among the first twenty states to contract with the Food and Drug Administration to combat teen smoking. Other southern states include North Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, and Mississippi.

    Governor Patton praised the combined efforts of ABC, the Kentucky retailers and the educational efforts of the Department of Agriculture for the drop in the non-compliance figures since the state's revised teen tobacco program went into effect on January 1, 1997. However, he said the challenge for the future is to maintain and lower the non-compliance results achieved during the eighteen months. Reduced accessibility increases the probability that youth will not find the use of tobacco products convenient. Protecting the health and welfare of Kentucky's youth is a priority of the Patton administration.

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