HILTON HEAD, S.C. – Beginning August 21, teens under the age of 18 caught in possession of cigarettes and other tobacco products will be breaking state law in South Carolina, reports the Island Packet.

The new law, intended to curb illegal underage smoking, carries penalties for those in violation of a $25 fine, community service and mandatory enrollment in “an approved smoking cessation program, writes the newspaper. While teens in violation of the new law may face penalties, they cannot be criminally charged or arrested for possessing tobacco products. 

“If we went out to write up every underage person smoking cigarettes, I wouldn't have enough deputies,” Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner told the newspaper, adding, “The numbers would be staggering.”

Backers of the new law say it will help keep teens from smoking, while others say it will have little to zero effect.

“There's really no evidence that laws like this are effective on their own,” Pete Fisher, vice president for state issues at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told the newspaper. “You're going to have to do other things as well to have any sort of impact.”

According to Fisher, the new law would have a better chance of success if it were paired with an increase in the state’s 7-cent-per-pack cigarette excise tax, which is the lowest state cigarette excise tax rate in the United States.