COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR ORDINANCE NO. 961122
Amending Chapter 50, Offenses and Miscellaneous
Provisions, Code of Ordinances of the City of Kansas City, Missouri, by
repealing Section 50-235, Sale or dispensing of tobacco products to minors, and
enacting in lieu thereof a new section of like number and subject matter.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY:
Section 1. That Chapter 50, Offenses and
Miscellaneous Provisions, Code of Ordinances of the City of Kansas City,
Missouri, is hereby amended by repealing Section 50-235, Sale or dispensing of
tobacco products to minors, and enacting in lieu thereof a new section of like
number and subject matter to read as follows:
Section 50-235. Sale or dispensing of tobacco
products to minor; possession by minors.
(a) Definitions. As used in this section the
following terms mean:
(1) Center of youth activities means any
playground, school or other facility, when such facility is being
used primarily by persons under the age of 18 for recreational,
educational or other purposes.
(2) Distribute means a conveyance to the public by
sale, barter, gift or sample.
(3) Minor means a person under the age of 18.
(4) Person means an individual, partnership,
co-partnership, firm, company, public or private corporation,
association, joint stock company, trust, estate, political
subdivision or any agency, board, department or
bureau of the state or federal
government, or any other legal entity which is
recognized by law as the subject of
right and duties.
(5) Proof of age means a driver's license or other
generally accepted means of identification that contains a picture of
the individual and appears on its face to be
valid.
(6) Public place means any area to which the public
is invited or in which the public is permitted, including, but not
limited to, any right-of-way, mall or shopping center,
park, playground, and any other property owned
by the City and any school district.
(7) Retail tobacco store means a retail store
utilized primarily for the sale of tobacco products and accessories in
which the sale of other products is merely incidental.
(8) Rolling papers means paper designed,
manufactured marketed, or sold for use primarily as a wrapping or
enclosure for tobacco which enables a person to roll loose
tobacco into a smokable cigarette.
(9) Sample means a tobacco product distributed to
members of the general public at no cost or at nominal cost for
product promotional purposes.
(10) Sampling means the distribution to members of the
general public of tobacco product samples.
(11) Tobacco products means any substance containing
tobacco leaf, including, but not limited to, cigarettes, cigars, pipe
tobacco, snuff, chewing tobacco, or dipping
tobacco.
(12) Vending machine means any mechanical electric
or electronic, self-service device which, upon insertion of money,
tokens or any other form of payment, dispenses
tobacco products.
(13) Under direct supervision means in the plain
vision of an adult employee or owner of a retail business during
regular business hours.
(b) Required sign stating violation of state law to
sell tobacco to minors under age 18; display of sign required on tobacco
displays and vending machines; control of tobacco products. The owner of an
establishment at which tobacco products or rolling papers are sold at retail or
through vending machines shall cause to be prominently displayed in a
conspicuous place at every display from which tobacco products are sold and on
every vending machine where tobacco products are purchased a sign that shall:
(1) Contain in red lettering at least one-half-inch
high on a white background the following: "It is a violation of
state and city laws for cigarettes or other tobacco
products to be sold to any person under the age
of eighteen"; and
(2) Include a depiction of a pack of cigarettes at
least two inches high defaced by a red diagonal diameter of a
surrounding red circle and the words "Under 18".
Further, all such vending machines shall be under
direct supervision of the owner of the establishment or an adult employee of
the owner unless such vending machine is located in a place where persons under
the age of eighteen are denied access.
It shall be unlawful for any business proprietor,
manager, or other person in charge or control of a retail business of any kind
to stock or display a tobacco product in any way which allows a customer to
access such tobacco product without first securing the physical assistance of
an adult business employee or minor employee under direct supervision of an
adult employee or owner for each transaction on and after June 1, 1997, except
that adult customers may be allowed to enter walk-in-humidors for the purpose
of selecting for purchase cigars displayed therein.
(c) Proof of age required, when: defense to action
for violation is reasonable reliance on proof; liability. (1) A person
selling tobacco products or rolling papers or distributing tobacco
product samples shall require proof of age from a prospective
purchaser or recipient, if an
ordinary person would conclude on the basis of
appearance that such prospective
purchaser or recipient may be under the age of
eighteen.
(2) Reasonable reliance on proof of age or on the
appearance of the purchaser or recipient shall be a defense to any
action for a violation of subsection (d)(2), (d)(3)
or (d)(4). No person shall be liable for more
than one violation of subsection (d)(2),
(d)(3) or (d)(4) on any single day.
(d) Unlawful to sell or distribute tobacco products
to minors, failure to display required signs, penalties, what persons are
liable; family members exempt; when.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to engage
in tobacco product distribution to persons under 18 years of age.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any person to sell any
tobacco product or distribute any tobacco product or rolling papers
to any minor or allow such sale or distribution.
This subsection shall not apply to the
distribution by family members on property that
is not open to the public.
(3) It shall be unlawful for any employee or owner
of an establishment where any vending machine is located to permit or
allow any minor to purchase or otherwise obtain any
tobacco product from such vending machine.
(4) It shall be unlawful for any person to
distribute tobacco product samples in any public place or at any
event open to the public except in retail tobacco stores.
(5) Any person who violates subsection (1), (2),
(3) or (4) of this section shall be fined:
a. For the first offense, $100.00
b. For the second offense, $200.00
c. For the third and subsequent offense,
$500.00.
(6) If a sale is made by an employee of the owner
of an establishment or control in violation of subsection (d), the
employee, the manager or other person in charge or
control of the establishment at the time of the
sale and owner of the establishment
shall be guilty of the offense. If a vending
machine is operated or located in violation
of subsection (b) the manager or other person
in charge or control of the
establishment and the owner of the
establishment shall be guilty of the offense. If a
sample is distributed by an employee of a
company conducting the sampling such
employee and owner of the company shall be
guilty of the offense.
(e) Possession or use of tobacco products by minors
unlawful.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any minor to knowingly
possess or use any tobacco product, and any tobacco product knowingly
possessed by a minor is hereby declared to be
contraband and may be seized by a law enforcement
officer and destroyed in order to
protect the public health.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any minor to knowingly
obtain or attempt to obtain any tobacco product by misrepresentation
of age or by any other method.
(3) It shall be prima facie evidence for purposes
of this chapter that the substance within a package or container is a
tobacco product if the product package or container has
affixed to it a manufacturers label which
identifies it as a tobacco product.
_______________________________________________________
Approved as to form and
legality:
_______________________________
Assistant City Attorney