Sacramento council to seek end of 'healthy food' exemption for tobacco retailers; directs staff on fees and enforcement

The Sacramento City Council discussed a staff report on city code changes to tobacco retailer licensing and directed staff to return with proposed ordinance language to eliminate the 2020 "healthy food" exemption, adjust license fees, and strengthen enforcement.

The report from the Community Development Department showed that the number of tobacco retail licenses in the city rose from 240 when the last amendment passed to 311 today, an increase of 71 licenses. "Of those 71, 27 open using the healthy foods exemption, while 44 were able to open without that healthy foods exemption," said Sean Bartos, Community Development Department, during the presentation. Bartos also said code enforcement issued about 300 notices of violation for flavored tobacco after the initial ban.

Council members and public-health advocates said the exemption had not achieved its stated goal of increasing healthy-food access and had become a loophole that increased retailer density. Rachel Alvarez, vice chair of the Greater Sacramento Smoke and Tobacco Free Coalition, urged the council to remove the exemption entirely. "We urge this council to remove the healthy food exemption in its entirety from City Code," Alvarez…