ATTORNEY GENERAL TOM MILLER:
Proposed Tobacco Legislation

Ban tobacco advertising near schools:

Attorney General Miller believes that children should be shielded from tobacco advertising. He requests that the Legislature enact a statute to ban all advertising of cigarettes and other tobacco products within 1000 feet of the perimeter of any school or any public playground or park.

Ban free cigarette samples and coupons:

Attorney General Miller requests the Legislature to enact a statute banning all free giveaways of cigarettes or tobacco products and banning coupons and other gifts given away as an inducement to purchase tobacco products.

Fund Grant Program for Local Tobacco Control: Experience around Iowa and the nation has demonstrated that strong and effective local enforcement of tobacco control laws can have a marked impact in reducing teenage use of tobacco. In particular, communities that have dedicated a law enforcement officer exclusively to tobacco control have seen good results in reducing youth use of tobacco.

Attorney General Miller requests the Legislature to enact a statute establishing a $1.5 million grant program to finance tobacco control efforts of local law enforcement agencies. The program could be funded with money from the settlement reached with the tobacco companies or from an increase in cigarette retail sale permit fees.

Establish Statewide Registry of Tobacco Permits. Currently, Iowa does not maintain a statewide registry of retail sales permits for cigarettes. This limits Iowa's ability to track permits and effectively check compliance with tobacco control laws.

Attorney General Miller requests the Legislature to enact a statute to create an accurate database listing all holders of retail sales permits for cigarettes. The database would be maintained by the Iowa Department of Health.