Bill Text: CA AB2021 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Crimes: selling or furnishing tobacco or related products and paraphernalia to underage persons.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed) 2024-05-28 - In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author. [AB2021 Detail]
Download: California-2023-AB2021-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Assembly
March 20, 2024 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 2021
| Introduced by Assembly Member Bauer-Kahan |
January 31, 2024 |
An act to amend Section 308 of the Penal Code, relating to crimes.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2021, as amended, Bauer-Kahan.
Crimes: selling or furnishing tobacco or related products and paraphernalia to underage persons.
Existing law prohibits the sale or furnishing of tobacco or tobacco products or paraphernalia, as specified, to a person who is under 21 years of age. Under existing law, a violation of this prohibition is punishable by a fine of $200 for the first offense, $500 for the 2nd offense, and $1,000 for the 3rd offense, either as a misdemeanor or by a civil action, as specified.
This bill would increase these fines to create a separate fine of $1,000 for the first offense, $5,000 for the 2nd offense, and $10,000 for the 3rd offense.
offense for firms, corporations, businesses, retailers, or wholesalers, who violate this prohibition.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 308 of the Penal Code is amended to read:308.
(a) (1) (A) (i)(ii) A firm, corporation, business, retailer, or wholesaler that under the circumstances described in clause (i) sells, gives, or in any way furnishes to another person who is under 21 years of age a product specified in clause (i) is subject to either a criminal action for a misdemeanor or a civil action brought by a city attorney, a county counsel, or a district attorney, punishable by a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000) for the first offense, five thousand dollars ($5,000) for the second offense, and ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for
any subsequent offense.
(ii)
(iii) This subparagraph does not apply to the sale, giving, or furnishing of any of the products specified in clause (i) to active duty military personnel who are 18 years of age or older. An identification card issued by the United States Armed Forces shall be used as proof of age for this purpose.
(B) Notwithstanding Section 1464 or any other law, 25 percent of each civil and criminal penalty collected pursuant to this subdivision shall be paid to the office of the city attorney,
county counsel, or district attorney, whoever is responsible for bringing the successful action.
(C) Proof that a defendant, or his or her their employee or agent, demanded, was shown, and reasonably relied upon evidence of majority shall be defense to any action brought pursuant to this subdivision. Evidence of majority of a person is a facsimile of, or a reasonable likeness of, a document issued by a federal, state, county, or municipal government, or subdivision or agency thereof, including, but not limited to, a motor vehicle operator’s license, a registration certificate issued under the federal Military Selective Service Act (50 U.S.C. Sec. 3801 et seq.), or an
identification card issued to a member of the Armed Forces.
(D) For purposes of this section, the person liable for selling or furnishing tobacco products to persons under 21 years of age by a tobacco vending machine shall be the person authorizing the installation or placement of the tobacco vending machine upon premises he
or she manages or otherwise controls they manage or otherwise control and under circumstances in which he or she has they have knowledge, or should otherwise have grounds for knowledge, that the tobacco vending machine will be utilized by persons under 21 years of age.
(2) For purposes of this section, “blunt wraps” means cigar papers or cigar wrappers of all types that are designed for smoking or ingestion of tobacco products and contain less than 50 percent tobacco.
(b) Every A
person, firm, or corporation that sells, or deals in tobacco or any preparation thereof, of tobacco, shall post conspicuously and keep so posted in his, her, or their place of business at each point of purchase the notice required pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 22952 of the Business and Professions Code, and any a person failing to do so shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of fifty dollars ($50) for the first offense, one hundred dollars ($100) for the
second offense, two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for the third offense, and five hundred dollars ($500) for the fourth offense and each subsequent violation of this provision, or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding 30 days.
(c) For purposes of determining the liability of persons, firms, or corporations controlling franchises or business operations in multiple locations for the second and subsequent violations of this section, each individual franchise or business location shall be deemed a separate entity.
(d) It is the Legislature’s intent to regulate the subject matter of this section. As a result, a city, county, or city and county shall not adopt any ordinance or regulation inconsistent with this section.
(e) For purposes of this section, “smoking” has the same meaning as in subdivision (c) of Section 22950.5 of the Business and Professions Code.
(f) For purposes of this section, “tobacco products” means a product or device as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 22950.5 of the Business and Professions Code.
