Joint Tobacco/Alcohol Merchant Education

Biddy Bostic (Synar Compliance Specialist) and Stephanie Southall (Underage Drinking Prevention Specialist) have begun a joint tobacco and alcohol merchant education project.  The purpose of the project is to provide community organizations with information and tips to pass on to retailers to reduce sales of tobacco and alcohol to underage customers, thus limiting the retail access of these products to youth.  Important documents related to merchant education are listed below.  If your organization is interested in participating or needs more information please contact Biddy Bostic.

• Procedures for Merchant Education Visits

• Points to Include in Merchant Education Dialogue

• Merchant Education Training Tips

• WV Laws Concerning Sale of Alcohol and Tobacco to Youth

• Suggested Policies and Procedures for Retailers

• Merchant Education Site Visit Form

• Merchant Education Site Visit Online Data Entry

Since the spring of 2008 Biddy Bostic, Synar Compliance Specialist, has been offering to assist corporations in helping their employees stay in compliance with WV State Code 16-9A-2. Mrs. Bostic sent a letter to corporate Directors of Operations enlisting their assistance and provided them the See Red? merchant education materials which they, in turn, support, disseminate, and train in their respective stores. In addition, she has made herself available to speak at corporate manager?s meetings to provide information on the Synar program as well as answer any questions that corporate officers or managers may have about the Synar program or WV State Code relative to the sale of tobacco to youth under the age of 18. In a number of presentations, Stephanie Southall joins Mrs. Bostic and presents underage youth access to alcohol information. When available, a representative of the WV State Police has joined Mrs. Bostic and Ms. Southall in speaking about enforcement of youth access laws re: tobacco and alcohol. It is the hope of both Mrs. Bostic and Ms. Southall that corporations will avail themselves of the opportunity to learn more about efforts to help their employees stay in compliance with WV State Code. Mrs. Bostic uses (as a guide) the following PowerPoint presentation in speaking with corporate officers/managers. For additional information, please contact Biddy Bostic.

Helping Retailers Stay In Compliance with the Law

See Red? Tobacco Retailer Education Initiative

Since 2003 the WV Dept. of Health & Human Resources and South Charleston Impact have implemented the See Red? Retailer Education Initiative to assist tobacco retailer and clerk compliance with the state law (State Code 16-9A-2) that prohibits the sale of tobacco products to youth under the age of 18. Twice a year, See Red? Retailer Education materials are sent to all businesses eligible for inspection in West Virginia. The list of eligible businesses is obtained from the WV Tax Department and screened and validated for accuracy. The See Red? Initiative comprises the following items:

*These items are posted with permission from South Charleston Impact (P.O. Box 8533, South Charleston, WV, 25303).

Tobacco Retailer Education Campaign (2001)

In 2001, Tobacco Retailer Education materials (available below) were sent to all businesses in West Virginia. Funding for production and distribution of the materials as well as the list of businesses was provided to the WV Prevention Resource Center through the WV Department of Health & Human Resources: Bureau for Public Health: Office of Epidemiology & Health Promotion: Division of Tobacco Prevention, which had obtained the mailing list from the WV Tax Department.

Brooke County Inspection Grant (2001)

Synar inspections completed between 1997-2000 indicated that Brooke County’s buy rate has increased every year the county has been selected for inspections. In 2000, Brooke County had a buy rate of 75% or 21 consummated buys out of 28 attempts. This was the single highest buy rate in the state. In an effort to decrease Brooke County’s buy rate, the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center applied for and received a grant from the WV Bureau for Public Health’s Tobacco Prevention and Control Program to fund retailer inspections and merchant education efforts in Brooke County.

In 2001, troopers from the Wellsburg Detachment of the WV State Police conducted three rounds of inspections in Brooke County. After each round, each merchant received either a compliance or non-compliance letter. Merchants also received information regarding WV Code pertaining to the sale of tobacco products to youth and information to assist them in complying with state and federal laws. Additionally, a trooper made a follow-up visit to the stores that did not comply. The results of the inspections are listed below.

Date of Inspection	Buy Rate
4/28/01	67%
5/12/01	20%
6/14/01	5%

Newspaper Advertisement Congratulating Retailers Who Complied

 

Cigar Sales to Minors Pilot Study (2001)

In the summer of 1999, the State of WV, through a contract with the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, conducted the first federally funded compliance checks of retail outlets to measure the level of illegal sales of cigars to minors. Findings indicated it was in fact harder for minors to purchase cigars over-the-counter than it was for them to buy cigarettes in the same manner. Minors were able to purchase cigars only 19% of the time, while they were able to purchase cigarettes 30% of the time (almost a third as often). While the finding of a 19% compliance rate for cigars falls below the federal threshold of 20% for cigarette sales, this rate still indicates the need for federal oversight of cigars commensurate with that of cigarettes. In addition, these findings complement those reported in the U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services Office of the Inspector General study on cigar use among teens. Patterns of Use and Perceptions of Risk. Of the teens surveyed in this 1999 study, 40% reported cigar use is increasing in popularity and use. 19% admitted to having smoked a cigar in the last 30 days.