Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, August 14, 1995 TAG: 9508140032
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
He's right to want to restrict teen-agers' access to tobacco products.
He's mistaken in trying to do it by fiat.
The president last week outlined several excellent proposals. Among them: (1) prohibiting sales of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products to anyone under 18 years old; (2) requiring face-to-face sales of cigarettes, with retailers' use of photo identification to verify a purchaser's age; (3) banning cigarette vending machines in places frequented by youth; and (4) outlawing self-service racks of tobacco products, mail-order sales and free samples such as so-called kiddie packs in which small numbers of cigarettes are distributed.
But Clinton would implement the proposals without congressional acquiescence or input. Instead, nicotine in cigarettes would be officially declared a dangerous addictive drug, making it subject to federal regulation by the Food and Drug Administration.
The issue isn't whether nicotine is an addictive health hazard. It is. But it is not a drug in the FDA sense of a product for which therapeutic value is claimed. And the president's unprecedented regulatory initiative likely won't do the job.
Already, the predictable legal challenges have been filed by the tobacco industry. The president's proposals also have provoked, just as predictably, hostility in Congress, including from representatives of tobacco-growing districts like L.F. Payne of Virginia's 5th District. The prospect now is for extended litigation that could go on for years - during which cigarettes, continuing to be too readily available to young people, could hook a whole new generation.
Far better for the president to press the case for congressionally enacted restrictions - no easy task, but preferable to letting the goal of teen-smoking curtailment sink in a regulatory quagmire.
Clinton also should press for the one congressional action that could do more than any he proposed last week to dissuade youngsters from smoking: a steep increase in the federal cigarette tax. Numerous studies have shown that jacking up the cost of smokes is the most effective step governments can take to keep youngsters from taking up the habit.
Meanwhile, there's nothing to prevent the Virginia General Assembly from acting on its own, and making good on its frequent boast that it outshines Congress in responsible leadership. With legislative elections coming up, how about a pledge from every candidate to:
Raise Virginia's cigarette tax, which shamefully remains the lowest in the nation.
Put teeth in the state law that already prohibits sales of cigarettes to minors by adding substantial penalties for those who break it and providing the necessary money to enforce it.
Adopt Clinton's proposals - the ban on self-service cigarette machines and displays, the requirement of proof of age with photo ID for tobacco purchases - for Virginia, regardless of how they fare at the federal level.
by CNB