Bill Proposes Rules For Tobacco Stings

Businessmen and lobbyists on Wednesday urged a legislative committee to approve a bill with new guidelines on how tobacco “stings” are conducted with minors to discourage underage sales.

But students, a doctor and a prosecutor all urged the House State Affairs Committee to kill or modify the bill, saying it would hamper efforts to stop minors from using tobacco products.

After two hours of testimony, the committee put off a vote until today. Chairman Ron Crane, R-Nampa, said he had another half-dozen people signed up to testify.

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Paul Kjellander, R-Boise, told committee members the state must adopt new guidelines to meet federal requirements.

The bill would provide the first state guidelines on using minors to see if retailers are selling tobacco products to underage customers. It would require parental consent in advance of such operations, says minors may not change their appearance to look older, and says stores must be informed immediately after a “sting” whether their employees passed or failed.