 Greenslate said currently the state of Illinois imposes a license on
tobacco retailers. The current fee the state charges is $250.
Greenslate said the city has ordinances in place for violators in
regard to underage purchasing as well as selling to underage
individuals.
He said officer Tim Butterfield has done a great deal of research
on what is being done in other communities. He said the license
would bring in revenue but would also place restrictions on where
cigarettes can be sold in the city.
Bruce Carmitchel asked if cigarettes were now being sold where
they shouldn't be.
Greenslate said no, not currently. He noted there used to be
problems with cigarettes being sold from machines with no
supervision, where minors could go in and buy. He also noted the
license program would allow for guidelines on where cigarettes may
be displayed, and he said there were people who were buying
cigarettes and reselling them without paying the appropriate taxes.
Greenslate said he felt a $250 license was reasonable. He said
there would be time involved in collecting the fees and doing the
paperwork, and time involved in the police department doing on-site
inspections, so the fee figure was justified.
Jonie Tibbs asked for clarification, wanting to know what the
reasoning was behind the city doing this.
Greenslate said it was to add control of tobacco sales on a local
level. He said last year the city had a grant to cover the cost of
inspections and enforcement, but the city shouldn't count on that
grant, as it could go away. He said the license and fee would add
revenue for the city and would give the city more control on who can
sell tobacco and where it can be sold.
David Wilmert said he didn't know that he wanted to see any more
fees. He noted that Greenslate had said there are currently no
violators or problems.
Jeff Hoinacki countered, though, saying that adding a license was
just another tool in the tool box for the city.
Marty Neitzel asked how many tobacco retailers were in the city
of Lincoln. Greenslate said there were 15, a surprisingly small
number, he said.
[to top of second column] |
David Armbrust said he hears and understands that the police
department needs more officers. He said he wasn't sure he understood
now wanting to add more work to the officers the city has.
Greenslate repeated that the city has had this inspection process
in the past, funded by grants. He said the city had used a minor
child, sending the person to retailers to buy cigarettes. He said in
the last year, there had been only one violation. He credited
Butterfield for working with this program.
Finally, he added that part of the reasoning behind this was to
help assure a healthier community. He noted that no one could tell
adults what to do, but it is important to try to protect children
from those who might influence them.
Carmitchel said that his "knee-jerk" reaction to the proposal was
negative, but he would listen to what the chief had in mind and give
it due consideration.
Tibbs said she felt that this was just another stress on
struggling businesses.
Greenslate, however, said thousands and thousands of packs of
cigarettes are sold in the city, and he felt the $250 figure was
small comparatively. He also noted that the cost of the license
would be passed on to the consumer; retailers will just raise the
price of a pack.
Melody Anderson told the council that they needed to remember
that Lincoln is a tax-capped community. She said: "I haven't given
this enough thought to say in favor or not in favor, but from the
standpoint of fees, fines, those types of things, we are a
tax-capped community. Our costs continue to go up every year, not
just from a contractual union perspective, but all across the board.
We can't take in enough taxes alone to continue at the rate we are
going. I think we have to be open (to) some of these considerations.
I'm saying that in general, not necessarily that I'm in favor or
against this one. We need to pick and choose the ones we feel are
going to be as fair as we can be. We're going to have to start
considering it."
O'Donohue said he agreed with Anderson; it had to be considered.
Kathy Horn commented that no retailer is being forced to sell
tobacco. "They can buy the license if they want to sell it," she
said. "If they don't buy the license, they can stop selling
cigarettes."
Greenslate and Butterfield will continue their work on this and
have something for the council to consider at a later date.
[By NILA SMITH] |
