Identifying tobacco product and store type correlates of underage tobacco sales in three U.S. states
Abstract
Background: In 2019, the United States (U.S.) raised the legal age of tobacco sales from 18 to 21 (i.e., Tobacco 21 [T21]); however, underage tobacco sales remain widespread, indicating the need to identify factors affecting T21 implementation. We examined whether tobacco product and store type contributed to compliance in three U.S. states: New Jersey (NJ), Nevada ([NV], the first state to require electronic ID verification), and North Carolina (NC).
Methods: In summer 2025, buyers aged 18–20 attempted tobacco purchases (cigarettes, cigarillos, e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches, smokeless tobacco) at 60 randomly selected stores in NJ, 51 in NC, and 66 in NV. Using an electronic survey, buyers recorded whether clerks checked or scanned IDs and completed sales (yes/no). We used Bayesian logistic regression and included fixed effects for store type, product type, and state and random effects for store and buyer.
Results: We completed a total of 2811 purchase attempts. On average, IDs were checked in 80.9% of attempts, and underage sales occurred in 26.8% of attempts. Non-chain convenience stores (vs. chain) had a lower likelihood of ID check (aOR: 0.22, 95% CI: 0.10-0.46), and purchase attempts for smokeless tobacco (vs. cigarettes) had 0.51 (95% CI: 0.31, 0.85) times the odds of ID check. Non-chain (vs. chain) stores were less likely to scan IDs (aOR: 0.11, 95% CI: 0.05-0.26). NV had a lower likelihood of underage sales than other states (aOR: 0.74, 95% CI: 0.22, 2.58).
Conclusions: Underage sales rates were high despite T21 implementation, underscoring the need for continued evaluation and surveillance in the U.S. and other countries considering T21 policies. Store type and tobacco product type are associated with T21 implementation efficacy, which may inform targeted regulatory efforts to improve compliance (e.g., increased compliance checks at non-chain convenience stores). ID scanning may be particularly useful for reducing underage sales.
Key messages: • Across 2,811 underage tobacco product purchase attempts in three U.S. states, underage sales occurred in 1 of 4 attempts.
• Non-chain stores and smokeless tobacco purchases had lower ID-check compliance, suggesting targeted enforcement could strengthen T21 implementation
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BibTeX
@article{kong2026identifying,
title = {{Identifying tobacco product and store type correlates of underage tobacco sales in three U.S. states}},
author = {AY Kong and C Ackerman and DM Kline and JGL Lee and JL Pearson and A Willis and A Zahra and M Ghasemi and CD Delnevo and M Hrywna},
journal = {The European Journal of Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.797},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.797},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Identifying tobacco product and store type correlates of underage tobacco sales in three U.S. states
AU - AY Kong
AU - C Ackerman
AU - DM Kline
AU - JGL Lee
AU - JL Pearson
AU - A Willis
AU - A Zahra
AU - M Ghasemi
AU - CD Delnevo
AU - M Hrywna
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - The European Journal of Public Health
DO - 10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.797
UR - https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.797
AB - Background: In 2019, the United States (U.S.) raised the legal age of tobacco sales from 18 to 21 (i.e., Tobacco 21 [T21]); however, underage tobacco sales remain widespread, indicating the need to identify factors affecting T21 implementation. We examined whether tobacco product and store type contributed to compliance in three U.S. states: New Jersey (NJ), Nevada ([NV], the first state to require electronic ID verification), and North Carolina (NC). Methods: In summer 2025, buyers aged 18–20 attempted tobacco purchases (cigarettes, cigarillos, e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches, smokeless tobacco) at 60 randomly selected stores in NJ, 51 in NC, and 66 in NV. Using an electronic survey, buyers recorded whether clerks checked or scanned IDs and completed sales (yes/no). We used Bayesian logistic regression and included fixed effects for store type, product type, and state and random effects for store and buyer. Results: We completed a total of 2811 purchase attempts. On average, IDs were checked in 80.9% of attempts, and underage sales occurred in 26.8% of attempts. Non-chain convenience stores (vs. chain) had a lower likelihood of ID check (aOR: 0.22, 95% CI: 0.10-0.46), and purchase attempts for smokeless tobacco (vs. cigarettes) had 0.51 (95% CI: 0.31, 0.85) times the odds of ID check. Non-chain (vs. chain) stores were less likely to scan IDs (aOR: 0.11, 95% CI: 0.05-0.26). NV had a lower likelihood of underage sales than other states (aOR: 0.74, 95% CI: 0.22, 2.58). Conclusions: Underage sales rates were high despite T21 implementation, underscoring the need for continued evaluation and surveillance in the U.S. and other countries considering T21 policies. Store type and tobacco product type are associated with T21 implementation efficacy, which may inform targeted regulatory efforts to improve compliance (e.g., increased compliance checks at non-chain convenience stores). ID scanning may be particularly useful for reducing underage sales. Key messages: • Across 2,811 underage tobacco product purchase attempts in three U.S. states, underage sales occurred in 1 of 4 attempts. • Non-chain stores and smokeless tobacco purchases had lower ID-check compliance, suggesting targeted enforcement could strengthen T21 implementation
SN - 1101-1262
SN - 1464-360X
ER -