Tobacco Enforcement
#

I. Tobacco Enforcement Forms:

II. List of Manufacturers and Brands Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-2603(Cum. Supp. 2002):

III. Responsibilities of the Nebraska Attorney General's Tobacco Enforcement Division include:

  • Coordinating with the Nebraska Department of Revenue and the Nebraska Health and Human Services System on tobacco enforcement matters;
  • Monitoring compliance with the economic provisions of the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA), including the receipt of Nebraska's annual payments;
  • Enforcing the MSA provisions including restrictions on tobacco advertising, marketing, promotions and lobbying;
  • Defending Statutes and the MSA against court challenges;
  • Enforcing the statutory requirements on nonparticipating tobacco product manufacturers to make annual deposits into a qualified escrow account based on the number of cigarettes sold in Nebraska. Lawsuits filed against nonparticipating manufacturers include, but are not limited to, those listed on the attached link;
  • Enforcing the provisions of the Smokeless Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement ("STMSA") including restrictions on advertising, marketing, promotions and lobbying.

IV. Master Settlement Agreement Restrictions on Participating Tobacco Product Manufacturers:

Advertising, marketing and promotions:

  • Prohibits targeting youth in advertising, marketing or promotions;
  • Prohibits taking any industry action aimed at initiating, maintaining or increasing youth smoking;
  • Bans cartoons in the advertising, promotion, packaging or labeling of tobacco products;
  • Limits tobacco brand name sponsorships to one sponsorship in a 12 month period, except sponsorship of some events are prohibited such as concerts, events with a significant percentage of youth in the audience, events in which youth are paid participants or contestants, or certain team sporting events (football, baseball, hockey, or soccer);
  • Prohibits tobacco brand names from stadiums or arenas;
  • Prohibits all outdoor advertising, including billboards, signs and placards in arenas, stadiums, shopping malls and video game arcades;
  • Prohibits transit advertising of tobacco products;
  • Limits advertising outside retail establishments that sell tobacco products to 14 square feet;
  • Prohibits manufacturers from entering into agreements that prohibit a third part from displaying anti-tobacco advertising;
  • Prohibits payments to promote tobacco products into movies, television shows theater productions, live performances, live or recorded music performances, videos and video games;
  • Prohibits tobacco brand name merchandise expept items sold within an adults only facility or items distributed at the site of a brand name sponsorship;
  • Prohibits giving free samples except in an adults only facility;
  • Prohibits giving proof-of purchase gifts to youth;
  • Prohibits material misrepresentations of fact regarding the health consequences of using any tobacco product.

Lobbying

  • Prohibits tobacco companies from opposing proposed state or local laws or administrative rules that are intended to limit youth access to and consumption of tobacco products;
  • Prohibits tobacco companies from opposing state legislation which bans the manufacture of packs containing fewer than 20 cigarettes;
  • Requires that tobacco company lobbyists certify in writing that they have reviewed and will fully comply with settlement terms, including disclosure of financial contributions regarding lobbying activity.

Miscellaneous

  • Requires that tobacco companies make payments to fund the American Legacy Foundation dedicated to reducing youth smoking;
  • Provides for public access to documents by requiring tobacco companies to open, at their expense, a web site, which includes documents produced in state and other smoking and health related lawsuits and to maintain the site until 2010 adding documents produced in future civil action involving health and smoking case

V. Smokeless Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (STMSA) Restrictions on Participating Manufacturers:

  • Restrictions on Participating Manufacturers to the Smokeless Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (STMSA) are similar to the advertising, marketing, promotions and lobbying restrictions set forth in the MSA as described above.
To report a possible violation of the MSA or STMSA in Nebraska, you may contact Assistant Attorney General Lynne R. Fritz at (402) 471-3833 or lynne.fritz@nebraska.gov. Please include your name, the name of the group or entity you represent, if any, your full address, phone number, and email address, if any, the tobacco company and product and detailed description of the complaint.