State & Local Regulation
Local Tobacco Regulation
Federal regulation and state laws are only part of the story. Local laws also dictate how and where tobacco products are sold, who can sell and use these products, and where they can be used.
According to published reports, there are now more than 2,216 municipalities in the United States with smoking restrictions. Of them, 461 stipulate a total ban on smoking in private workplaces, government buildings, restaurants and/or bars.
Additionally, hundreds of localities across the country have adopted restrictions on the sale of cigarettes through vending machines, and more than 100 localities have limited the distribution of tobacco product samples. More than 50 local governments restrict or prohibit displays of tobacco products that permit customer access without the assistance of a clerk.
From seed-bed to sales counter to usage, federal, state and local tobacco laws make cigarettes among the most highly regulated products in the nation.