Desk Item
PREPARED BY: ROBERT SCHULTZ
Town Attorney
Reviewed by: Town Manager, Town Attorney, and Finance Director
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: 05/02/2017
ITEM NO: 11
DESK ITEM
DATE: MAY 2, 2017
TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
FROM: ROBERT SCHULTZ, TOWN ATTORNEY
SUBJECT: AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF LOS GATOS REQUIRING THE LICENSURE
OF TOBACCO RETAILERS AND ADDING SECTION 18.60.020 TO THE TOWN
CODE OF LOS GATOS ENTITLED PERMITS FOR RETAILERS OF TOBACCO
PRODUCTS AND/OR ELECTRONIC SMOKING DEVICES
REMARKS:
The attached correspondences (Attachment 2) were received after the Council report was
distributed to Council. In response to the correspondences, the draft Ordinance has been
revised to properly cite Penal Code Section 308 and also to include further findings on the
negative effectives of menthol tobacco. In addition, this Desk Item addresses and provides
further information on the negative effects of menthol cigarettes.
In 2009, Congress passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (FSPTCA)
granting the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with regulatory authority over tobacco
products. Effective September 22, 2009, the FSPTCA banned artificial or natural flavorings, as
well as herbs or spices, which produce characterizing flavors in cigarettes. This included flavors
such as strawberry, grape, orange, clove, cinnamon, pineapple, vanilla, coconut, licorice, cocoa,
chocolate, cherry, and coffee. Menthol, however, was exempt from the ban.
In addition, the FDA Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) was established
and charged with developing a report assessing the impact of the use of menthol in cigarettes
on public health and proposing recommendations to the FDA on whether menthol should be
regulated or not. The TPSAC report and recommendations were submitted to the FDA on March
23, 2011, with the main finding that the availability of menthol cigarettes has an adverse impact
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SUBJECT: AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF LOS GATOS REQUIRING THE LICENSURE
OF TOBACCO RETAILERS AND ADDING SECTION 18.60.020 TO THE TOWN
CODE OF LOS GATOS ENTITLED PERMITS FOR RETAILERS OF TOBACCO
PRODUCTS AND/OR ELECTRONIC SMOKING DEVICES
DATE: MAY 2, 2017
5/2/2017 1:45 PM RWS
on public health in the United States (U.S.) and recommended removal of menthol cigarettes
from the marketplace.
Although the use of cigarettes is declining in the U.S., sales of menthol cigarettes have steadily
increased in recent years, especially among young people and new smokers. More than 50
percent of menthol cigarette smokers are female (52.2 percent) and nearly 30 percent of all
menthol smokers are African American (29.4 percent). A 2013 study found that, among
cigarette smokers, menthol cigarette use was more common among 12 -17 year olds (56.7
percent) and 18-25 year olds (45 percent) than among older persons (30.5-34.7 percent). In
2015, 54.5 percent of high school current tobacco users and 48.4 percent of middle school
current tobacco users smoked menthol cigarettes. These national averages are similar to rates
among youth in Santa Clara County.
Additionally, the April 2016, California Medical Association (CMA) issued white paper titled
Flavored and Mentholated Tobacco Products: Enticing a New Generation of Users states,
“Research supports the finding that flavors and menthol tobacco products are ‘starter’ products
that establish daily habits and increase addiction to tobacco products, make it harder to quit,
and increase use of multiple tobacco products concurrently.”
Attachment 1 (Previously distributed with Staff Report on April 27, 2017):
1. Draft Ordinance requiring the licensure of tobacco retailers and adding section 18.60.020 to the
Town Code of Los Gatos entitled permits for retailers of tobacco products and/or electronic smoking
devices.
Attachments received with this Desk Item:
2. Public Comments
3. Revised redline draft Ordinance