By David Montgomery
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 13, 1998; Page B01

The House of Representatives wants to impose on the District one of the more rarely enforced laws in crime fighting: busting kids for smoking.

Rep. Brian P. Bilbray, a Republican from San Diego, offered an amendment to the D.C. budget bill that would ban possession of tobacco by minors. Anyone younger than 18 who is caught with a cigarette would be subject to a civil penalty of up to $50 and could be required to perform community service or attend a stop-smoking clinic. Succeeding offenses could bring fines of up to $100 and suspension of driving privileges if the person is old enough to have a learner's permit.

The measure was included in the $6.8 billion budget bill that the House passed Friday. The Senate will not take up the city's budget until after returning from summer recess Aug. 31.

Nearly half the states, including Virginia and Maryland, have laws outlawing the possession of cigarettes by minors. Federal law outlaws selling tobacco to minors.

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) said smoking policy is a "quintessential local concern" that should be left up to the D.C. Council. She said the measure would impose an "unfunded mandate" on the city because police officers would be diverted from other duties. She added that it was ironic that Congress previously had blocked the District from hiring lawyers to sue tobacco companies for health care costs, as some states are.

Bilbray was on vacation and not available for an interview, but in introducing his amendment, he said that the D.C. Council had failed to pass a law barring children from smoking. "I think this will help to send a message . . . to all the legislatures that have overlooked this little detail," he said.

In the suburban Washington delegation, those voting for the smoking measure were Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.) and Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.); voting no were Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.), Rep. Constance A. Morella (R-Md.) and Rep. Albert R. Wynn (D-Md.).

Leading national anti-smoking groups, including the American Lung Association and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, submitted letters opposing the measure. They argued that Congress should focus instead on strengthening enforcement of laws against adults selling cigarettes to minors and on blocking the tobacco industry from targeting children.

A spokesman for Bilbray said yesterday that the lawmaker also favors such measures but that he believes laws against possession are an important part of an overall strategy to keep youngsters from smoking.

In Maryland and Virginia, relatively few minors are charged with possession of tobacco. Overworked police officers say they have other laws to enforce, and state officials say they are also busy trying to halt the sale of tobacco to children in the first place.

A spokesman for the D.C. police said he could not comment on the measure unless it becomes law.

In Maryland, about 490 minors were penalized in 1995 for possession of tobacco, the latest available figures, according to Joan Stine, director of the office of health promotion in the state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. That compares with about 17,000 high school seniors who the department estimates are daily smokers, plus thousands of younger smokers.

Violations in Maryland are a civil offense, and violators can be required to attend smoking cessation clinics, perform 40 hours of community service or pay fines ranging from $25 to $100.

Enforcement is left to local police departments. A spokesman for the Prince George's County police said officers do not enforce the law because the penalties are civil, not criminal. In Montgomery County, police have cited some youths for smoking, but no statistics are available.

In Virginia, state Alcohol Beverage Control officials reported that 230 juveniles were cited for possession of tobacco or attempts to purchase tobacco in the year that ended June 30. That compares with the more than 25,000 children who become regular smokers every year in Virginia, according to the state Department of Health. Penalties are as much as $50 for a first offense and $100 for a second offense.

Police in several Northern Virginia jurisdictions said they regularly stop youngsters who are smoking, sometimes simply confiscating the cigarettes and sometimes issuing citations. In Arlington County, school resource officers patrol the county's three high schools after classes, looking for smoking and other violations, said Detective Ken Rosenberg. One day a month is set aside before a juvenile court judge to handle tobacco violations, Rosenberg said.

Fairfax County police Capt. Chuck Peters said that the department concentrates on targeting store owners who sell tobacco to minors but that officers also stop youngsters they see smoking.

"They can take the kid home and informally counsel them, or they can actually cite them," Peters said.

A Leesburg police spokesman, Sgt. Claggett Moxley, said officers issued 41 citations for underage possession of tobacco in 1997 and already have issued 52 this year.

Staff writers Maria Glod, Susan Levine and R.H. Melton contributed to this report.