As part of the state's Tobacco Education and Compliance Check Program, ALE agents every month randomly check stores that sell cigarettes and other tobacco products to make sure the clerks are asking for identification and refusing sales to anyone under the age of 18.

“Since starting these checks five years ago, we have seen the number of underage tobacco sales drop significantly,” said ALE Director William Chandler. "We will continue to conduct unannounced compliance checks at retail sales outlets to ensure young people cannot purchase cigarettes or any other tobacco product."

The N.C. Health and Wellness Trust Fund pays for the tobacco check program to prevent young people from smoking. In North Carolina, surveys show that ninety percent of adult smokers began using cigarettes before age 18. In addition to health issues, experts say the use of tobacco products often leads to other drugs and increases the likelihood of a young person's activity with theft or other criminal activities.

“It's easy for a store clerk to identify an underage person,” said Chandler. “A red border around the driver's license means the person is under the age of 18. If you see red, the tobacco sale is dead.”

A District Court judge may fine a violator up to $1,000 or order community punishment of up to 30 days if the defendant has no prior convictions. If the clerk does have prior convictions, he or she could be serving time in jail as well. Selling tobacco to an underage person is a Class II misdemeanor.

ALE is the lead agency for the Tobacco Education and Compliance Check Program, and works in partnership with the Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services. The N.C. Retail Merchants Association and the N.C. Association of Convenience Stores also supports the tobacco campaign.

ALE, a division of the Dept. of Crime Control and Public Safety, has 117 agents across North Carolina to enforce alcohol and tobacco laws. ##