AB 225

This bill allows a retailer to place cigarettes, nicotine products, or tobacco

products only in locations that are inaccessible to customers without the assistance

of the retailer or the retailer's employee or agent, such as behind the counter or in

a locked case. The bill's restriction does not apply to 1) cigarettes, nicotine products,

or tobacco products sold in a vending machine; 2) a retail location that generates 90

percent or more of its revenue from sales of cigarettes, nicotine products, or tobacco

products, as long as the retail location prohibits anyone under the age of 18 from

entering without a parent or guardian; or 3) cigars that are placed in a separate,

humidity-controlled room in a retail location if the entrance to the room is visible

from the check-out area and no person under the age of 18 is permitted to enter the

room without a parent or guardian. Current law imposes restrictions on sales from

a vending machine that this bill does not affect.

A retailer who violates the bill's restriction is subject to the same penalties that

apply to violations of other restrictions that apply to retailers of cigarettes or tobacco

products, including 1) a forfeiture of not more than $500, if the retailer has

committed a previous violation within 12 months; 2) a forfeiture of not less than $200

nor more than $500, if the retailer has not committed a previous violation within 12

months; and 3) suspension of the retailer's license for a period of time that depends

on the number of previous violations committed by the retailer.

The bill also allows a first class city, which currently includes only Milwaukee,

to suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew a cigarette and tobacco products retailer

license if the retailer violates the bill's restrictions, by following the complaint and

hearing procedure that exists under current law for certain other violations and

activities.