Sacramento Retailers Contest Annual Cigarette Fee

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California grocers implored members of a Sacramento City Council subcommittee to reject a proposed law that would charge retailers an annual $300 fee to sell cigarettes, reported the Sacramento Bee.

The City Council Law and Legislation panel voted last week to forward the measure for a full council hearing.

Anti-smoking advocates and residents hailed the ordinance as a chance for Sacramento to be a "model for the state," dedicating license fees to police and enforcing oft-ignored laws that penalize retailers that sell cigarettes to minors, according to the news source.

At the Feb. 3 meeting, Darnell Sams, 18, said the law would relieve stress from teens that are tempted with easy access to cigarettes.

"It's just one more opportunity to get us in trouble," he told the Bee. "That's not what we need."

Grocers said they were trying to keep teens -- and their clerks -- away from trouble. Kevin Wright, operations manager for Raley's, said the store safeguards against illegal sales to minors by training clerks and setting cash registers to lock when they read an age-sensitive item such as liquor or cigarettes.

Carlos Tapia, an assistant zone manager for Foods Co., said his employees sign an annual affidavit saying they won't sell tobacco to minors. The proposed ordinance, he said, is unfair.

"This is attacking all retailers in the checkbook as opposed to focusing on those who do not follow the rules," he said.

The proposed Sacramento ordinance would set up sting operations, and violators could be charged with a misdemeanor and fines ranging from $250 to $25,000, according to the news source.