Written by: Dr. Chris Miller
We as a society should be proud of the work that has been done to reduce tobacco use amongst our youth. Indeed, according to the National Youth Risk Behavioral Survey, in 1993 70% of adolescents used tobacco; by 2021 that number dropped to 17%. Locally, that number is even lower, less than 10% This feat was accomplished through a variety of public health strategies. Kudos to all those involved!
The City of Milpitas recently approved a local Tobacco Retail License (TRL), among other efforts, to restrict and monitor the sale of tobacco products that will take effect on October 1, 2026. The city should be applauded for their efforts to reduce underage tobacco use. However, in doing so, the City Council of Milpitas will now require all merchants in the City, by law, to ask purchasers for their identification, regardless of age. In essence, a person in their 40s 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s or even a 100+ year-old person who purchases tobacco will be required to show their identification in order to prove they are over the minimum purchase age of 21. Since the City does not currently have a TRL in force (at least until October 1, 2026), the default law in the City is what the Federal Drug Administration put into place in 2024: merchants are required to verify age by means of photographic identification for cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, and covered tobacco products of individuals who appear to be under the age of 30.
As of October 1, 2026, every merchant in the City of Milpitas will be required by City Code to ask for the ID of all purchasers regardless of age. What is the purpose of requiring someone decades over the minimum purchase age of 21 to show their ID? Unfortunately, no one has been able to provide me with ANY empirical study or data that justifies the requirement that a retailer ask for ID of an individual decades over the minimum purchase age of 21, including one of the leading anti-tobacco research institutes at the Public Health Law Center at Mitchell Hamline School of Law.Â
I urge the Milpitas City Council members to amend the ordinance they recently approved to require merchants to ask for the identification of purchasers that appear to be under the age of 30, which is currently the practice in the City until October 1, 2026, and reject government overreach of asking individuals decades over the minimum purchase age to show their ID.
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Dr. Chris Miller is a lifelong resident of Silicon Valley and is involved in a variety of community activities, including Rotary International, suicide prevention efforts at the state, county, and national levels, as well as underage substance usage prevention.
