This fact sheet explains how communities can use tobacco retailer licensing as a tool to enforce tobacco laws in businesses that sell tobacco products. There are 3 main benefits to implementing a tobacco retailer licensing law: 1) limits youth access to tobacco; 2) fees pay for law enforcement; 3) facilitates local enforcement of all tobacco laws. Such a law can also promote other policy solutions such as controlling location and density of tobacco retailers, imposing additional restrictions on sales of tobacco products like little cigars, and prevent the sale of drug paraphernalia.