Proposal advances to prohibit tobacco possession by minors
A measure that would make it illegal for people under the age of 18 to possess tobacco products in Ulster County took a step forward this week when two key legislative committees approved a resolution setting a public hearing on the proposal.
The full Legislature is to vote April 18 on holding a public hearing May 9.
As proposed, the county law would make it illegal, as of Jan. 1, 2018, for anyone under the age of 18 to possess, use or distribute any tobacco products or electronic smoking devices. Offenders could be ticketed by local law enforcement.
Legislator TJ Briggs, the bill’s sponsor, said
New York is one of only a handful of states to not restrict the possession of tobacco products by minors. He said he hoped the law would encourage youths to quit smoking if they’ve already started and to discourage those who haven’t from picking up the habit.
Originally, the law called for youths found with tobacco to be sentenced to 10 hours of community service for the first offense, with the number of community service hours increasing for repeat offenses. Since its introduction, though, the bill has been amended to instead call for a fine not to exceed $50 for each offense, up to 10 hours of community service or both for each offense. The proposed law now also includes a provision to allow the minor to participate in a tobacco education program in lieu of the fine or community service.
Briggs, D-Ellenville, said the changes “allow for judicial discretion” and provide judges with a variety of options “without penalizing the youth from a financial perspective.”
He said the changes also take into consideration that not all communities in Ulster County have a robust community service program in which the youths could participate.
“At the end of the day, it’s never been about punishment,” Briggs said. “But if they go to court and the judge says ‘three hours of community service,’ maybe it makes them think about it, and maybe, just maybe, they don’t smoke.”
Ulster County Attorney Bea Havranek, whose office prosecutes crimes committed by youths, in Family Court, said Wednesday that it was “premature” to say whether the law would have an impact on her office.
County Sheriff Paul VanBlarcum said he would expect his officers to “use their discretion” when enforcing the law.
“It will definitely give us an opportunity to talk to kids, but it’s the officer’s discretion whether he’s going to issue a ticket or not,” VanBlarcum said. “We’re not going to be out there hiding in the bushes looking for 16- or 17-year-olds smoking cigarettes.”
Saugerties Police Chief Joseph Sinagra said that while police are obligated to enforce all laws, he questioned whether enforcing this law would be a good use of his resources.
“To me, law enforcement is here to protect community members from being victims of crimes. We’re not the health department police,” he said.
“We have so much on our plate in law enforcement these days, now they want us to start looking for anybody under the age of 18 smoking cigarettes? I don’t believe it’s a really good use of the resources of my department,” Sinagra added.
Like VanBlarcum, Sinagra said he would expect his officers to use their discretion when enforcing the law.
Sinagra, though, said he would rather his office focus on adults who sell youth tobacco products to minors — which is a violation of state law — and questioned why stakeholders, including the Ulster County Police Chiefs Association, weren’t consulted about the proposed law prior to its introduction.