(This resource corresponds to Module 2.)

One way to reduce young people’s use of alcohol and tobacco products is to make it more difficult for them to obtain these products from stores, vending machines, and other sources in their community. Here are some ways to do this:

• Train merchants who sell alcohol and tobacco products. Communities can set aside public funds to train merchants to comply with underage purchasing laws that prohibit the sale of alcohol and tobacco to minors. Studies show that training clerks can be effective in preventing the sale of tobacco to young people.¹ In many states and local communities, training for alcohol servers is now mandated.² Clerks should be aware of the State underage purchasing laws, know appropriate procedures for checking identification (ID) and detecting fake IDs, and know how to refuse sales to minors. Owners and managers should also be aware of their legal liability, store policies that prevent sales to minors, and systems to monitor employees’ compliance with store policy. In a large sample of outlets from the Midwest, one study found that off-sale outlets (i.e., grocery and liquor stores, as opposed to restaurants and bars) that reported having such systems were less likely to sell to customers who appeared to be young than those that reported not having these systems in place.³
  
  
• Monitor merchants who sell alcohol and tobacco products. In all 50 states, it is illegal to sell alcohol to anyone who is under 21 years old and to sell cigarettes to anyone who is under 18 years old. Communities can monitor retail establishments’ sales through regular compliance checks, where youth are sent to outlets to attempt to buy alcohol. Any clerk that sells to the youth is fined, and the violation is recorded on the outlet owner’s license. Studies show that compliance checks can substantially reduce illegal sales of alcohol and tobacco to minors.⁴
  
  
• Restrict the practices of alcohol retail outlets. Communities can require retailers to follow certain selling guidelines. For instance, keg registration laws require alcohol stores to assign identification numbers to beer kegs.⁵ Stores record this information, along with the name and address of each person who purchases a keg, enabling police to identify and punish adults who purchase kegs and then allow underage drinkers to consume the beer. Communities can also prohibit or limit the delivery of alcohol to people’s homes.⁶ Home delivery provides opportunities for alcohol to be sold to minors, since delivery people may be more likely than in-store clerks to make illegal sales or be careless in checking identification.
  
  
• Restrict alcohol availability at community events. Communities can place restrictions on the serving of alcohol at community or special events targeted at young people, such as parades, street fairs, and open-air events.⁷ In these situations, it is difficult to place controls on alcohol servers who may not have had training in refusing sales to minors.⁸ Community policies can also limit consumption and sales to a restricted area, limit the number of servings sold to individuals, reduce the size of servings, sell low-alcohol beverages only, prohibit individuals from bringing their own alcoholic beverages, and/or require legal drinkers to wear a wristband.⁹

Resources

1. State Tobacco and Activities Tracking and Evaluation System (1998). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health. Available online at http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/statesystem.
   
   
2. Biglan, A., Henderson, J., Humphreys, D., Yasui, M., Whisman, R., Black, C., and James, L. (1994). Experimental evaluation of a community intervention to reduce youth access to tobacco. Unpublished manuscript; Keay, K. D., Woodruff, S. I., Wildey, M. B., and Kenney, E. M. (1993). Effects of a retailer intervention on cigarette sales to minors in San Diego County, Calif. Tobacco Control, 2, 145–151; and Skretny, M. T., Cummings, K. M., Sciandra, R., and Marshall, J. (1990). An intervention to reduce the sale of cigarettes to minors. New York State Journal of Medicine, 90, 54–55.
   
   
3. Toomey, T. L., Kilian, G. R., Gehan, J. P., Perry, C. L., Jones-Webb, R., and Wagenaar, A. C. (1998). Qualitative assessment of training programs for alcohol servers and establishment managers. Public Health Reports, 113(2), 162–169; and Toomey, T. and Wagenaar, A. (1999). Policy options for prevention: The case of alcohol. Journal of Public Health Policy, 20(2), 193–212.
   
   
4. Wolfson, M., Toomey, T. L., Murray, D. M., Forster, J. L., Short, B. J., and Wagenaar, A. C. (1996). Alcohol outlet policies and practices concerning sales to underage people. Addiction, 91(4), 589–602; and Toomey, T. and Wagenaar, A. (1999). Policy options for prevention: The case of alcohol. Journal of Public Health Policy, 20(2), 193–212.
   
   
5. Preusser, D. F., Williams, A. F., and Weinstein, H. B. (1994). Policing underage alcohol sales. Journal of Safety Research, 25(3), 127–133; Center for Research in Disease Prevention, School of Medicine, Stanford University (1994). San Jose STAT (Stop Teenage Addiction to Tobacco). Paper presented at the Information Exchange Conference: Breaking the Grip of Tobacco State by State, San Francisco, Calif.; Cummings, K. M. and Coogan, K. (1992). Organizing communities to prevent the sale of tobacco products to minors. International Quarterly of Community Health Education, 13, 77–86; Feighery, E., Altman, D., and Saffer, G. (1991). The effects of combining education and enforcement to reduce tobacco sales to minors: A study of four Northern California communities. Journal of the American Medical Association, 266, 3168–3171; Forster, J. L., Murray, D. M., Wolfson, M., Blaine, T. M., Waggener, A. C., and Hennrikus, D. J. (1997). The effects of community policies to reduce youth access to tobacco. Manuscript submitted for publication; Jason, L. A., Ji, P. Y., Anes, M. D., and Birkhead, S. H. (1991). Active enforcement of cigarette control laws in the prevention of cigarette sales to minors. Journal of the American Medical Association, 266, 3159–3161; and Preusser, D. F., Ulmer, R. G., and Preusser, C. W. (1992). Obstacles to enforcement of youthful (under 21) impaired driving. Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
   
   
6. Fletcher, L. A., Toomey, T. L., Wagenaar, A. C., Short, B., and Willenbring, M. L. (2000). Alcohol home delivery services: A source of alcohol for underage drinkers. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 61(1), 81–84; Toomey, T. and Wagenaar, A. (1999). Policy options for prevention: The case of alcohol. Journal of Public Health Policy, 20(2), 193–212.
   
   
7. Cassady, D., Flora, J., and Foote, D. (1987). Alcohol use at community events: Creating policies to prevent problems. San Diego, CA: San Diego Alcohol Program and Applied Communication Technology; Wittman, F. D. and Harding, J. R. (1997). The environmental approach to AOD prevention. Sacramento, CA: California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs, Pub. No. 97-3501; and Prevention Enhancement Protocols System (1999). Preventing problems related to alcohol availability: Environmental approaches. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention.
   
   
8. Toomey, T. and Wagenaar, A. (1999). Policy options for prevention: The case of alcohol. Journal of Public Health Policy, 20(2), 193–212.
   
   
9. Toomey, T. and Wagenaar, A. (1999). Policy options for prevention: The case of alcohol. Journal of Public Health Policy, 20(2), 193–212.