{Note: The following local retail tobacco ordinance
provisions are contained in and are drawn from Chapter 227 of Minnesota Laws,
1997, pertaining to the licensing of retail sale of tobacco products. Chapter 227 became effective on
Ordinance 2 – 2nd Series
The Council of the City of
1. License.
A. No person shall keep for retail sale, sell at
retail or otherwise dispose of any tobacco product at any place in the City
without first obtaining a license from the City. “Tobacco” is defined as and includes: cigarettes; cigars; cheroots; stogies;
perique; granulated, plug cut, crimp cut, ready rubbed, and other smoking
tobacco; snuff; snuff flour; Cavendish; plug and twist tobacco; fine cut and
other chewing tobaccos’ shorts’ refuse scraps, clippings, cuttings and
sweepings of tobacco, and other kinds and forms of tobacco, prepared in such
manner as to be suitable for chewing or smoking in a pipe or other
tobacco-related devices. [Source:
B. The annual license fee for a retail tobacco license shall be $24.00 per year. All retail tobacco licenses shall be valid for one calendar year from the date that the license is issued.
C. Every license shall be conspicuously posted at the place for which the license is issued and shall be exhibited to any person upon request.
2. Sales Prohibited to Minors. No person shall sell or offer to sell any
tobacco or tobacco product to any person under eighteen (18) years of age. [Source:
3. Administrative Penalties.
A. If a licensee or employee of a licensee sells
tobacco to a person under the age of 18 years, or violates any other provision
of this ordinance, the licensee shall be charged an administrative penalty of
$75. An administrative penalty of $200
must be imposed for a second violation at the same location within 24 months
after the initial violation. For a third
violation at the same location within 24 months after the initial violation, an
administrative penalty of $250 must be imposed, and the licensee’s authority to
sell tobacco at that location must be suspended for not less than seven
days. No suspension or penalty may take
effect until the licensee has received notice, served personally or by mail, of
the alleged violation and an opportunity for a hearing before a person
authorized by the City to conduct the hearing.
[Source:
B. An individual who sells tobacco to a person
under the age of 18 years must be charged an administrative penalty of
$50. No penalty may be imposed until the
individual has received notice, served personally or by mail, of the alleged
violation and an opportunity for a hearing before a person authorized by the
City to conduct the hearing. [Source:
C. It is an affirmative defense to the chare of selling tobacco to a person under the age of 18 years in violation of this ordinance that the licensee or individual making the sale relied in good faith upon proof of age as follows:
1. A valid driver’s license or identification card issued by the State of Minnesota, another state, or a province of Canada, and including the photograph and date of birth of the licensed person; or
2. A valid military identification card issued by the United States Department of Defense; or
3. In the case of a foreign national, from
a nation other than
[Source:
4. Self-Service Sales.
A.
No licensee shall offer for sale single packages of cigarettes or
smokeless tobacco in open displays which are accessible to the public without
the intervention of a store employee. [Source:
B.
Cartons and other multi-pack units may be offered and sold through open
displays accessible to the public. [Source:
C.
Section 4(B) of this ordinance will expire upon the effective date and
implementation of Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21, Part 897.16(c). [Source:
D.
The self-service restrictions described in the Section 4 shall not apply
to retail stores which derive at least 90% of their revenue from tobacco and
tobacco-related products and which cannot be entered at any time by persons
younger than 18 years of age. [Source:
5. Vending Machine Sales. No person shall sell tobacco products from
vending machines. This section does not
apply to vending machines in facilities that cannot be entered at any time be
persons younger than 18 years of age. [Source:
6. Compliance Checks. The City shall conduct unannounced compliance
checks at least once each calendar year at each location where tobacco is sold
to test compliance with Minnesota Statutes §609.685. Compliance checks shall utilize minors over
the age of 15, but under the age of 18, who, with the prior written consent of
a parent of guardian, attempt to purchase tobacco under the direct supervision
of a law enforcement officer or an employee of the licensing authority. [Source:
This ordinance shall become effective after its passage and publication.
Dated:
Pam Monsrud, City Clerk Morris Vacura, Mayor
Published in the