Tobacco Retailer Licensing (TRL) is a policy tool that local governments use to regulate the sale of tobacco in businesses. TRL policies can help to limit tobacco access among young people and communities targeted by the tobacco industry, reduce tobacco-related health disparities, and ensure that tobacco retailers are compliant with tobacco laws.
TRL policies can include many health protections for residents such as: restricting the sale of harmful tobacco products like flavored tobacco, setting minimum price requirements to make tobacco less affordable, and ensuring that tobacco is not sold near youth-sensitive areas like schools and parks. In Alameda County, most cities have adopted TRL policies, and all cities in Alameda County prohibit the retail sale of flavored tobacco products without exemptions:
Alameda County Tobacco Control Program (TCP) provides information, education and tobacco retail best practices to community members and local jurisdictions interested in adopting or strengthening tobacco retail laws, as well as technical assistance to tobacco retail enforcement agencies throughout the County in implementing tobacco retail laws.
TCP also helps direct potential tobacco retail violations to the appropriate enforcement agency to support effective implementation of local tobacco retail laws. To report potential tobacco retail violations for any of the following, please email Alameda County Tobacco Control Program at TCP@acgov.org or call (510) 208-5920:
- Tobacco sales to underage persons
- Flavored tobacco sales
- Sales of electronic smoking devices / vapes in Dublin, Emeryville, Hayward, Livermore, Pleasanton, Union City or Unincorporated Alameda County (Ashland, Cherryland, Castro Valley, San Lorenzo, Sunol, Fairview, or Hayward Acres)
To learn more about Tobacco Retail Licensing, please visit: https://tobaccofreealamedacounty.org/focus-areas/tobacco-retail-licensing/.