Tobacco Regulation Bill To Be Voted On In Senate
Tobacco Regulation Bill To Be Voted On In Senate
A piece of tobacco regulation is bound for the Senate floor as of this week. The Family Smoking and Tobacco Control Act (S. 982) came out of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and is on track for Senate voting.
This bill, which was sponsored by Senator Edward Kennedy, is one of several efforts put forth by the federal government to give Washington the ability to regulate tobacco and tobacco products. Though legislators have tried in the past, the federal government has never been able to oversee the tobacco industry. That all would drastically change with the passage of this bill.
Until recently, the only government involvement with the tobacco industry has been through court cases, not actual policy. S. 982 would set up a policy where the Food and Drug Administration would become the regulating authority over the “manufacture, marketing, and distribution of tobacco products” (S 982 sec 3.1). This would provide the FDA with much oversight into the heavily profitable tobacco industry. Some of the main focus of the FDA oversight would include; disclosure of ingredients to tobacco products, the ability to regulate carcinogen levels allowed in tobacco products, and regulation of marketing techniques employed by the industry.
The bill is likely to have enough support to pass through the Senate, though opposition to the bill will want to add amendments to the bill’s language to limit FDA oversight. As is expected, the bill is supported by several health agencies, and opposed by the tobacco industry and several advertising interests.
Tags: tobacco study
