Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
                               ASSEMBLY, No. 2388
                             STATE OF NEW JERSEY
                               221st LEGISLATURE
                                              DATED: MAY 7, 2024
                                                  SUMMARY
    Synopsis:                   Requires inspections of retail cigarette and vapor product dealers.
    Type of Impact:             Annual local expenditure and revenue increases.
    Agencies Affected:          Local governments; Department of Health; Department of Law and
                                Public Safety.
                                       Office of Legislative Services Estimate
    Fiscal Impact                                                       Annual
    Local Expenditure Increase                                       Indeterminate
    Local Revenue Increase                                           Indeterminate
    The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) concludes that this bill will increase expenditures for
     local governments by an indeterminate amount annually to perform the mandatory inspections
     of retail cigarette and vapor product dealers.
    It is also likely that the bill’s mandatory inspection requirement will lead to the issuance of
     additional violations by county and municipal enforcement agencies and result in an
     indeterminate amount of annual revenue for the municipalities in which these violations occur.
                                            BILL DESCRIPTION
    This bill requires an official authorized by the Office of the Attorney General or the
Department of Health, including any county or municipal law enforcement agency, to inspect
retail cigarette and vapor product dealers at least twice annually for violations of current State
law regarding cigarettes and vapor products that have a characterizing flavor. The bill also
requires the official to perform a follow-up inspection within three months following a
violation.
      Office of Legislative Services                                    Legislative Budget and Finance Office
           State House Annex                                                    Phone (609) 847-3105
              P.O. Box 068                                                       Fax (609) 777-2442
      Trenton, New Jersey 08625                                                  www.njleg.state.nj.us
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                                        FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
   None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
    The OLS concludes that this bill will increase expenditures for local governments by an
indeterminate amount annually to perform the mandatory inspections of retail cigarette and vapor
product dealers. It is also likely that the bill’s mandatory inspection requirements will lead to the
issuance of additional violations by county and municipal enforcement agencies and result in an
indeterminate amount of annual revenue for the municipalities in which these violations occur.
This estimate assumes that the responsibilities of the Office of the Attorney General and the
Department of Health under the bill would not result in any fiscal impact to the State.
    At present, State law authorizes local public health and law enforcement officials to issue a
summons for violations of the State’s existing prohibition against selling: 1) cigarettes that have a
characterizing flavor other than tobacco, clove, or menthol; and 2) vapor products that have a
characterizing flavor. Generally, enforcement efforts vary by municipality, with no minimum
inspection requirement provided in existing statute. This bill mandates two inspections annually
with a follow up inspection required when violations are found. Costs incurred under the bill
would be due to additional staff and equipment, such as automobiles, needed to meet the bill’s
inspection requirements.
    The cost increase under the bill would not affect all local governments equally. For example,
a large number of retailers requiring inspection in a jurisdiction would result in higher expenditures
under the bill for that jurisdiction. For reference, according to the federal government, there were
12,528 tobacco retailers, which includes retailers of both cigarettes and vapor products, in New
Jersey as of 2020. Conversely, to the extent that a local entity currently complies, even partially,
with the provisions of the bill, the cost of the bill to these entities would be reduced.
    Assuming the bill would require local governments to increase the number of inspections of
retail cigarette and vapor product dealers, the OLS concludes that municipal revenues will
increase by an indeterminate amount from a greater number of violations. As provided in
current law, for violations of the State’s ban on most flavored cigarettes, there is a civil penalty
of not less than $250 for the first violation, not less than $500 for the second violation, and
$1,000 for the third and each subsequent violation. These amounts are doubled for violations
of the ban on flavored vapor products. The OLS cannot determine the number of additional
violations that will occur or estimate the total additional revenue that will be collected by
municipalities.
  Section:      Human Services
  Analyst:      Sarah Schmidt
                Lead Research Analyst
  Approved:     Thomas Koenig
                Legislative Budget and Finance Officer
This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the Office of Legislative Services due to the
failure of the Executive Branch to respond to our request for a fiscal note.
This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).
Statutes affected: 
Introduced: 2A:170-51.6, 2A:170-51.12