Selectmen Press For Ban On Cigarette Machines
Selectmen Press For Ban On Cigarette Machines
By Steve Bigham
The Board of Selectmen is seeking the adoption of an ordinance that would prohibit vending machine sales of cigarettes and tobacco products in Newtown. The selectmen sent their request on to the Legislative Council Monday night.
First Selectman Herb Rosenthal raised the issue after receiving a letter from Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who has begun a statewide campaign to ban the machines. He says that vending machines are a major source of illegal cigarette purchases for young children.
âA vending machine ban has been given new added impetus by the May 8, 2001 decision of the Connecticut Supreme Court upholding the town of Orangeâs ordinance and its courageous stand against the tobacco industry,â Mr Blumenthal said in a June 26 letter to Mr Rosenthal.
The attorney general said vending machines provide the tobacco industry with a ready dispenser â not unlike a street corner âpusherâ â of its addictive and deadly products.
The State Supreme Court held that a local ban on cigarette vending machines is consistent with Connecticut General Statute 12-289, which allows for the placement of cigarette vending machines in areas generally accessible only to adults, including places with liquor permits. Moreover, the court ruled that a subsection of this statute provides the towns with the authority to ban these machines altogether.
âNothing in this section shall be construed as limiting a town or municipality from imposing more restrictive conditions on the use of vending machines for the sale of cigarettes. A municipality shall be responsible for the enforcement of such conditions,â the court ruled.
A brief search for cigarette vending machines in Newtown turned up very few. The one at Blue Colony Diner was recently removed, as was the one at Pizza Palace. The Pizza Palace cigarette machine has been replaced with candy machines. A cigarette machine was found inside 100 Church Hill Road Restaurant.