Melrose Partners With 5 Communities on $63K Anti-Tobacco Grant

Melrose City Hall received word this week that it and five other communities are receiving a three-year grant that will dole out $63,000 annually to combat tobacco use.

And according to Ruth Clay, the extra funds to combat minors getting hooked on tobacco come at most opportune time, as more flavored tobacco products—from mini-cigars to smokeless, spitless tobacco pouches—that could entice kids flood store shelves.

"During our last tobacco compliance check, a girl got a Dutch Corona strawberry-flavored cigar that was packaged in pink foil," Clay said. "Now who is that targeted towards? Not your middle-aged guy."

The three-year grant starts July 1, after the turn of the fiscal year, and comes from the state Department of Public Health's Bureau of Substance Abuse Services. It'll mainly pay for the salary and benefits of a part-time employee, hired by Melrose, who will run compliance checks in Melrose, Wakefield, Stoneham, Malden, Medford, and Winchester.

In addition to compliance checks, where a minor is sent into the store under local health department supervision and attempts to purchase a tobacco product, Clay said, the grant will also fund inspections that ensure local stores have the correct signage on display and valid tobacco license.

The new part-time employee shared by the communities will also undertake outreach efforts in promoting smoking cessation and education, by working with local doctors in each city and town and providing those doctors with brochures and information on cessation, Clay said.

The grant is also eligible for four one-year extensions, meaning it could last as long as seven years, Clay said, but more importantly, it makes Melrose and the other five communities eligible for future grant funding from the Bureau of Substance Abuse Service to combat alcohol and drug abuse.

Melrose has been running regular tobacco compliance checks for a number of years at local stores, paid for out of the Health Department budget and usually run three times a year, Clay said. The grant will pay for one of the yearly compliance checks, in addition to the signage and tobacco license inspection.

"We’ve had some issues in the past—we’ve suspended the tobacco license of three different businesses over time," she said. "That doesn’t happen unless they’ve sold to a minor twice within 24 months. So we’re hoping at this point that everybody has got the message and has their procedure in place to avoid that."

The consequences of failing a tobacco compliance check are set by local ordinance. In Melrose, a first violation results in a fine of $100 levied against the store and requiring the store owner and employees to attend an education program offered by the Melrose Health Department.

A second violation within 24 months of the first violation results in a $200 fine and the store's tobacco permit being suspended for seven consecutive business days; a third violation results in a $300 fine and 30-consecutive-day permit suspension; and a fourth violation results in the permit's revocation.