Be sure to check out the latest issue of our biweekly newsletter, The Watcher. Reg policy articles this time: Congress Holds Hearings on Bush's Changes to Regulatory Process FDA Drug Approval Process under Scrutiny

As promised, Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), along with Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), last week introduced legislation that would dramatically improve the regulation of tobacco products. Reps. Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Tom Davis (R-VA) introduced a companion bill in the House. Among other provisions the legislation would:

• Place tobacco regulation under the purview of the FDA;
• Crack down on tobacco advertising targeted at youths;
• Increase the size of warning labels;
• Prohibit the use of the terms "light," "low," and "mild;" and
• Prohibit the sale of "cigarettes characterized by strawberry, cinnamon, grape, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, vanilla, mint and other flavors" (presumably menthols).

Currently, tobacco is one of the few industries that is largely unregulated. A recent Harvard study found tobacco levels in cigarettes are steadily rising, thus proving America needs government regulators to step in. The bills are a common sense approach to solving some serious problems, and already enjoy bipartisan support. This legislation should quickly move through Congress and immediately be signed by President Bush.

Today, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) introduced the Safe Food Act. Among other things, the legislation would create a new agency in charge of food safety and labeling. According to the Center for Science and the Public Interest, "Currently, food safety monitoring, inspection, and labeling functions are spread across 12 federal agencies." The bill would also improve the ability of regulators to trace back food borne illnesses to their source.

Yesterday, two House subcommittees held back-to-back oversight hearings investigating President Bush's recent amendments to Executive Order 12866 — Regulatory Planning and Review. The first hearing, held by the House Science and Technology Committee subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight, delved into the specific impacts of the amendments.

• OMB Watch's own Rick Melberth framed the amendments as the next step in a disturbing trend where the White House has adopted tools to delay regulation.
• Rep. Brian Baird (D-WA) wondered how the marketplace incentivized certain protections.
• Witness and former OIRA administrator Sally Katzen criticized the administration for exerting influence over agency guidance documents.
• And subcommittee Chair Brad Miller (D-NC) chastised the influence of the Presidential appointees who will serve as Regulatory Policy Officers:

If an RPO makes the wrong decision for the wrong reason, we're not going to know about it. Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), the ranking member on the subcommittee, exhibited a lack of understanding of the issue at large. He claimed the amendments do not require "additional hurdles to be overcome" and he muddled the separate issues of market failures and cost-benefit analyses. He left abruptly in the middle of the hearing. The second hearing, held by the House Judiciary Committee subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law, focused on action Congress could take. Committee Chair John Conyers (D-MI) and subcommittee Chair Linda Sanchez (D-CA) both asked witnesses what Congress could do. While Columbia University law professor Peter Strauss admitted Congress's options are limited, Curtis Copeland from the Congressional Research Service pointed out that Congress may declare that Executive Orders not hold any legal sway. Rep. William Delahunt (D-MA) is ready to "wage war" on the "institutional combat" against the legislative branch. Read more from The Pump Handle here.