H.R. 1108 would protect the public health by providing the Food and Drug Administration with certain authority to regulate tobacco products.
Detailed Summary
Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to provide for the regulation of tobacco products by the Secretary of Health and Human Services through the Food and Drug Administration, including through disclosure, annual registration, inspection, recordkeeping, and user fee requirements.
Sets forth criteria by which tobacco products are deemed adulterated or misbranded.
Allows the Secretary to require prior approval of all label statements.
Allows the Secretary to restrict the sale or distribution of tobacco products, including advertising and promotion, if the Secretary determines that such regulation would be appropriate for the protection of the public health. Prohibits such regulations from: (1) limiting product sales or distribution to authorization of a practitioner licensed to prescribe medical products; (2) prohibiting product sales in face-to-face transactions by a specific category of retail outlets; or (3) establishing a minimum age greater than 18 years of age for product purchases.
Prohibits cigarettes from containing any artificial or natural flavor (other than tobacco or menthol) or an herb or spice, including strawberry, cinnamon, or coffee.
Requires the Secretary to establish tobacco product standards to protect the public health, but reserves to Congress the power to ban any tobacco products or reduce the nicotine level to zero.
Allows the Secretary to take specified actions, including public notification and recall, against unreasonably harmful products.
Requires premarket approval of all new tobacco products.
Sets forth standards for the sale of modified risk tobacco products.
Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) judicial review; (2) coordination with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC); (3) congressional review of regulations; and (4) state and local authority.
Requires the Secretary to establish a Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee.
Amends the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act to change cigarette warning label and advertising requirements.
Amends the Comprehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health Education Act of 1986 to change smokeless tobacco warning label and advertising requirements.
Status of the Legislation
Latest Major Action: 4/2/2008: House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 38 - 12.
Points in Favor
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Points Against
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Visitor Comments
wonker
This Act creates a Monopoly for Big Tobacco, Raises Taxes, Expands Bureaucracy, Ignores Public Health, and Bans Tobacco in America.
This legislation will allow only the largest tobacco manufacturers to survive.
The bill will increase taxes on Americans by $300 million/year.
It will expand the bureaucratic authority of an inefficient agency (FDA) already struggling with the approval process for, and monitoring of, existing drugs.
The Act will distract the FDA from its core mission of approving safe and effective products – a standard unachievable by any tobacco product.
FDA Commissioner Edwards stated in sworn Congressional testimony in 1972 that “if cigarettes were to be classified as drugs, they would have to be removed from the market because it would be impossible to prove they were safe for their intended use."
The bill decimates family farms by instituting limitless authority to ban compounds found naturally in tobacco leaf, resulting in de facto prohibition
WonkerWrong
The majority of the comments made by Wonker are absolutely baseless. If he/she had bothered to read the Act, he/she would know that it explicitly states that the FDA cannot "ban" tobacco. Nor does the Act in any way create limitless authority to ban compounds "found naturally in tobacco leaf." Do your research before you post!
emily
Plain and simple...smoking cigarettes kills. If you want to kill yourself that way, go ahead, but I agree with the government in trying to make it a little harder. They're actually doing smokers a favor in the end.
Concered citizen
All of us must work together to keep children safe from tobacco addiction. We may not have the money that tobacco companies have, but we have the hearts that react to the pain and suffering caused by tobacco use. As a nurse, one needs to draw attention to the effects of tobacco-related diseases and how it impacts our patients. This is a momentous step forward to protect people from a lifetime of tobacco addiction and disease. H.R.1108, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2007, will reduce health care costs and improve quality of care for our society.
Landowner
Stop eating fat, excercise, don't breath the air, don't drink coffee, what else should our government control for us folks?
Disgusted
This bill deliberately signals out a minority group of people (approx 22% of the population-(smokers) to pay for the health care of a greater majority of the population. Does the phrase "taxation without representation" ring a bell with anyone? Can we say discrimination here? How would you like to have an additional tax on every gallon of gas you use in your car to pay for programs that do not benefit you or that will be denied you in a time of need? Regardless of your personal feelings about smoking, try removing the blinders and looking at the bigger picture. What group is next for targeting - after the overweight of course, for that has already started. And while the FDA cannot ban tobacco, the bill will allow them to reduce the nicotine (which just happens to be a natural component of the plant, thereby changing its structure so to speak) to a point where the cigarette is unpalatable, it is, as a judge ruled recently - prohibition.
George Mason
Concerned C Tobacco has generated 2.6 trillion world wide since the year 2000. 2.2 trillion has been collected by governments. tobacco Cos make about 30 cents a pack as of right now in the US. Governments in the US make on average about $2.20 a pack. Governments are the biggest profiteers in the tobacco trade. Nice try!
Alice in Wonderland
Non smokers should think about where the taxes will come from when smokers all quit smoking. My bet is property taxes get raised - a lot!
Lindsey
Smokers should think about the fact that federal spending on healthcare, welfare, etc. would go WAY down if smokers didn't incapacitate themselves by smoking and developing one of many smoking-related diseases. Tax revenue will go down, but so will millions of death as well as the need for tax money.
Alice in la la land
Alice - Property taxes might get raised, but health care costs might go down. Then the country won't have to spend so much money on Medicaid/Medicare because less people smoke.
Fastrunner
The costs of tobacco use are much greater than the tax benefits. Since smoking is primarily a habit of low income groups, the public pays for sick and dying smokers treatments through increased medicaid and medicare costs.
FDACan'tHandleIt
WonkerWroge, The bill would actually allow for states to ban the sales of tobacco in there state. I'm all for NOT selling tobacco to kids, lowering taxes etc, but the bottom line is that the FDA does not have the means to oversee and carry out a task on this proportion. You also have to consider the store owners who sell tobacco, it is a significant part of there sales, it would hurt them, their employees and community.
Spartan
People talk about health care cost going down etc but cig taxes fund so many state and federal projects, if sales of tobacco go down then the gen pop would begin to pay more taxes to cover up for the loss. It's about the benjamins baby!
Marjorie Miller
Isn't it funny they care more about complete record keeping on every cigarette sold, and aren't worried at all about auditing the voting system. See http://votebankaccount.com/TimeTracker/selfRecount.aspx
for a self-check recount. Vote these clowns out of office. Get a Vote Account and track your votes. Soon to be updated and extended to general election erector set.
Do you know where your vote is?