Board of Aldermen 05-14-2019 Page 27
Alderman Clemons
Thank you. So I’m glad that we could come up with a compromise on this. The reason that | brought
this forward was because | originally said that | would never vote to take away somebody’s rights who
has an existing right. So in other words if you are 18 and you currently have the ability to purchase
tobacco or whatever, this doesn’t take that away. Also, in addition to that it gets rid of the fines. What
| didn’t realize until this evening was the, and | want to thank Alderman Harriott-Gathright for this was
the distribute, provide or give part of it. And that was clearly an oversight on my part because | would
have never endorsed something that if kids pass around a cigarette to one another, they could be fined
$50.00 to $100.00. So | don’t know how my colleagues feel about this but | can’t support this with that
in there.
As | am thinking about these amendments, you know, | brought these forward because | honestly
believed that this legislation was going to pass and it was going to hurt people. And | am glad to have
brought forward a compromise that a good portion of this Board can support. But having said that,
somebody also brought up to me the other day, well would a doctor in Nashua be able to prescribe
Chantix? Or would they be able to, would a person who is trying to quit smoking be able to buy
Nicorette Gum? | don’t know. | don’t know the answer to that. This is something that has really really
gotten to me, and while we worked very hard on the amendments, | don’t know, there are too many ...
for a City to do something like this, there are too many unintended consequences to really think about.
| don’t think we’ve vetted them, | don’t think we know what they all are. | don’t know what I’m going to
do.
Alderman Lopez
Can | ask Attorney Bolton if there is any legal definition of distribute or if that does include anything
from selling commercially or distributing.
Attorney Bolton
It means just what you think it means if you give this to someone else, with or without compensation,
you’ve distributed.
Alderman Lopez
| guess I'd like to propose that we amend it to replace the words, to phrase distribute with commercial
sales of.
Attorney Bolton
If | can make a suggestion why don’t you just say you want to delete the words “distribute, provide or
give” because | think you are going to have the same problem with provide and give that you have with
distribute. So then that section will say “no person or businesses shall sell a tobacco product etc”. So
you want to, | believe you want to eliminate the words “distribute, provide or give”.
President Wilshire
What paragraph is that in?
Attorney Bolton
That’s “B” of 304-2.
