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College students urge Palm Desert to adopt tobacco retail license to curb flavored-product sales to youth
Summary
Public commenters from the College of the Desert urged Palm Desert’s council to adopt a local tobacco retail licensing system to enable enforcement of state flavor bans and reduce youth access; councilmembers acknowledged the concern but took no immediate action.
Two College of the Desert students spoke during non-agenda public comment Thursday to urge the City of Palm Desert to adopt a comprehensive tobacco-retail licensing ordinance that would strengthen enforcement of state flavor bans and reduce youth access to flavored tobacco.
Miguel Gonzalez, who said he participates in the Fuerte Project, told the council that without a local license the city “has no reliable way to track which businesses are selling tobacco, ensure they are following the law, or take timely action when violations occur.” He said a local system would allow the city to prevent sales near schools and parks and to hold retailers accountable.
Joseph Gonzalez, also a College Corps fellow, described a local decoy compliance operation in which 8 of 22 stores sold tobacco illegally to people under 21 and said investigators found flavored products on display at every store visited. “These laws are only effective when they are enforced,” he said, urging adoption of licensing to enforce existing state prohibitions on flavored tobacco.
Mayor Jan Harnick and councilmembers acknowledged the topic’s importance and noted staff would look into it. No action was taken at the meeting; the speakers’ request was entered into the public record.
