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Albany High students urge council to ban tobacco sales in city; staff to follow up on legal risks
Summary
Students from Albany High’s TUPE program asked the council to pursue a ban on retail tobacco sales in Albany. Staff said they had previously reviewed legal risks and will provide a substantive follow-up report and meet with the students.
Two groups of students from Albany High School addressed the City Council during the Dec. 9 public comment period to renew a campaign to stop retail sales of tobacco in Albany.
A student identifying himself as "Neil" (speaking with "Michael") described Albany High’s Tobacco Use Prevention Education (TUPE) program and urged the council to resume work toward removing tobacco sales from the city, saying students see peers harmed by nicotine and that restricting sales would help reduce youth initiation. Tyler Shelton, another Albany High student and TUPE member, gave a separate comment describing observed harms among classmates and asked the council to “get the ball rolling” on ending tobacco sales in Albany.
City staff responded that the city had previously looked into legal risks associated with restricting tobacco sales and offered to provide a more substantive report to the council and to engage with the student group at the high school on next steps.
Why it matters: local restrictions on tobacco sales can affect access among youth and are subject to legal constraints; the students’ request prompted staff to commit to follow-up reporting and engagement.
Direct quote: "As a student going to Albany High, I see firsthand how...easily accessible tobacco products are...stopping the sales of tobacco in Albany will help the nicotine and tobacco addiction problem amongst our youth," one student said.
No formal action or ordinance was introduced at the meeting; staff said it will prepare follow-up information for council consideration.
