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March 16, 2004

Mayor Lauds High Compliance Rate, State-Local Partnership

Woodbridge Township has received special recognition from the New Jersey State Department of Health and Senior Services for its success in preventing the sale of tobacco products to underage persons, Mayor Frank G. Pelzman announced today.

During the 2004 inspection cycle in the Tobacco Age of Sale Enforcement Program (T.A.S.E.) , Woodbridge achieved a 96% compliance rate in visits to 118 retail establishments. It was the seventh year in a row in which the Township achieved a compliance rate of 94% or higher.

The recent award from the Department of Health and Senior Services commends Woodbridge for helping the State maintain the federally mandated compliance rate of 20% or below. The 20% rate is necessary for a state to receive future TASE funding from the federal government as outlined in the 1992 Synar Amendment.

“We are happy to receive this recognition because we are committed to keeping tobacco products out of the hands of our children,” says Mayor Pelzman. “This innovative program has helped us achieve great success in that area, and thanks to the state grant, we do not have to spend local taxpayers’ money. In particular, this award spotlights the effectiveness of the program here in Woodbridge.”

The T.A.S.E. Program sends youth participants, ages 14 to 17, into randomly selected retail establishments in an attempt to purchase tobacco products. The youths are recruited from local high schools, undergo training by Woodbridge Township Health and Human Services Department personnel and are under supervision of a licensed health inspector. The program is paid for entirely through funds from the Federal/State Tobacco Settlement Fund.

During the 2004 survey period 12.7% of the sites inspected for the weighted State sample sold tobacco to minors. Though this is a vast improvement over the 84% of New Jersey merchants who sold tobacco to minors in 1994, TASE program officials are aiming at even greater compliance with the law in the years to come.

“The ever-increasing compliance rate among merchants is a sign that the overall anti-smoking message is gaining ground,” says Dennis Green, Director of the Township’s Health and Human Services Department. “It is an excellent step in helping us reduce the rate of tobacco use among young people in Woodbridge.”