The Youth Vaping Epidemic has generated increased urgency for comprehensive tobacco control policy in the retail environment. Flavored tobacco bans provide opportunities for local jurisdictions to create new or bolstered tobacco retail licensing (TRL) policies. The chance to amend or create new TRLs allows jurisdictions to regulate minimum pack size, minimum price, and product discounting--the tobacco industry’s number one marketing technique. Cheap, small packs of tobacco products disproportionately target new users, youth, and low socioeconomic populations. By coupling minimum prices with prohibitions on the redemption of coupons or discounts, a jurisdiction can set a floor price that makes these products significantly less attractive to these populations.

In this webinar, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department’s Tobacco Prevention Program in collaboration with The Law & Policy Partnership to End the Commercial Tobacco Epidemic will outline how it was able to leverage support for flavored tobacco bans to pass comprehensive TRL policy. This presentation will highlight the unique combination of on-the-ground advocacy work and public health law expertise credited for passing two local ordinances in Santa Barbara County; it will also cover lessons learned about the implementation phase of comprehensive new sales restrictions. The Tobacco Prevention Program’s outreach to decision makers, priority population engagement, and coalition/stakeholder training as well as the public health law theory behind minimum pack size, minimum price, and coupon/discount prohibitions will be discussed.

This webinar has already occurred. Please use the resources below:

Webinar Slides
California Comprehensive Tobacco Retailer Licensing Ordinance (2020)
Keeping Hookah Tobacco in Flavored Sales Restrictions: Why It's Important for Health Equity (2020)

Presenters:
Hudson Kingston, Public Health Law Center
Megan Kenney, Santa Barbara County Public Health Department

Moderator:
Andrew Twinamatsiko, Public Health Law Center