Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation, University of Arkansas, 308A HPER Building, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA.
Family and Community Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 May 31;20(11):6016. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20116016.
Preemptive statutory language within tobacco minimum legal sales age (MLSA) laws has prohibited localities from enacting stricter laws than state statutes. With the recent uptake of state Tobacco 21 laws in the US, the current landscape of preempted MLSA laws is unknown. This study sought to update the status of preemption in MLSA laws enacted in US states between 2015-2022. A public health attorney reviewed state tobacco MLSA laws ( = 50) and state tobacco control codes, searching for language regarding preemption. When statutes were unclear, case law was reviewed by examining local ordinances that were invalidated by state court decisions. Overall, 40 states enacted Tobacco 21 laws, seven of which expanded or introduced preemption when they increased the MLSA; a total of 26 states (52%) included preemption. Six states (12%) retained 'savings clauses' included in the MLSA prior to Tobacco 21, and 18 states (36%) did not mention preemption. Based on the precedent set by state courts, eight of these 18 states may preempt localities from raising their MLSA. Historically, preemption has slowed the diffusion of best practices in tobacco control, and once implemented, the laws are difficult to repeal. The recent expansion of preemption could inhibit the evolution, development, and implementation of effective tobacco control policies.
烟草最低法定销售年龄 (MLSA) 法规中的先发制人法规禁止地方制定比州法规更严格的法律。随着美国最近通过的州烟草 21 岁法案，目前被先发制人 MLSA 法规所涵盖的情况尚不清楚。本研究旨在更新 2015 年至 2022 年间美国各州颁布的 MLSA 法规中的先发制人地位。一名公共卫生律师审查了州烟草 MLSA 法规（=50）和州烟草控制法规，寻找有关先发制人的语言。当法规不明确时，通过审查因州法院裁决而无效的地方法规来审查判例法。总体而言，40 个州颁布了烟草 21 岁法案，其中 7 个州在提高 MLSA 时扩大或引入了先发制人；共有 26 个州（52%）包括先发制人。6 个州（12%）保留了烟草 21 岁之前 MLSA 中的“保留条款”，18 个州（36%）没有提及先发制人。根据州法院设定的先例，这 18 个州中的 8 个可能会阻止地方提高 MLSA。从历史上看，先发制人已经减缓了烟草控制最佳实践的传播，一旦实施，这些法律就很难废除。先发制人的最近扩张可能会抑制有效的烟草控制政策的演变、发展和实施。
