Citizen Health & Safety

FDA Commissioner Opposes Commonsense Tobacco Bill

Mar 13, 2007 by Matthew Madia

FDA commissioner Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach is opposed to bipartisan legislation that would allow FDA to regulate tobacco products. Sensible bills in both the House and the Senate would dramatically improve public health as it relates to tobacco products. The bill would do so by placing the tobacco industry — which currently goes unregulated — under the purview of FDA. In a Mar. 6 interview with the Associated Press, von Eschenbach manipulates the facts in his opposition to the bill. His specious arguments are a poorly veiled attempt to side with the tobacco industry. He also claimed tobacco products are too complex for the FDA to handle. How can an FDA commissioner hold such little regard for his own agency? One of the bills sponsors, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), wrote a letter to von Eschenbach asking him to correct his various misstatements. Your statements suggest a serious misunderstanding of the bill and appear to ignore overwhelming evidence that such regulation is necessary to address the continuing epidemic of tobacco-related death and disease. Waxman then discredits von Eschenbach's argument point by point. Waxman's letter is a pleasure to read (as his Bush administration proddings usually are). Check this one out here.

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High-profile Opposition to Bush Regulatory Changes

Mar 9, 2007 by Matthew Madia

The Environmental Forum, a bimonthly publication of the Environmental Law Institute, has published ">six opinions pieces on President Bush's changes to the regulatory process. The magazine features three opinions in favor of the changes and three opposed, including a piece by OMB Watch Executive Director Gary Bass. Of particular concern is the opinion of John G. Knepper, Deputy General Counsel of OMB. One new amendment requires agency Regulatory Policy Officers (RPO) be presidential appointees. Knepper argues this will make those officials more accountable to Congress and the public. But the Executive Order does not require the Senate to approve the RPO. Knepper, presumably involved in the drafting of the changes, should be more forthright in his argument. In opposition, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) reinforced the common conclusion that the White House — in the face of an opposition Congress — is attempting in its last two years to leave an anti-regulatory legacy. Waxman articulates the underhanded Bush tactic with a great simile: "Like a retreating army that mines the road behind it, the Bush administration is erecting new barriers to prevent commonsense safeguards from advancing in the next administration."

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Johnson Continues to be Submissive on EPA Budget, but Congress Investigates

Mar 8, 2007 by Matthew Madia

As Reg•Watch has blogged before (here and here), President Bush is attempting to further undermine EPA's ability to promulgate regulations to protect the environment by slashing the agency's budget. Administrator Stephen Johnson has inexplicably defended the cuts, towing the administration line instead of sticking up for his own agency. In a Senate hearing yesterday, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) expressed this same concern: "To have the EPA administrator talk about how he's not really fought the cuts is very disturbing to me." (Reported in E&E Daily) Today, the House committee on Energy and Commerce is grilling Johnson on the cuts. You can watch the hearing here. Kudos to Congress for putting up a fight where EPA hasn't.

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Latest Watcher

Mar 7, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Be sure to check out the latest issue of our biweekly newsletter, The Watcher. Regulatory policy articles this time: Bush Continues Anti-Regulatory Efforts with Industry Nominee to CPSC Scientific Consultant Sparks Controversy over Conflicts of Interest In Congress, No Shortage of Fuel Economy Proposals

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Medical Marijuana Lawsuit Uses Data Quality Act

A new Data Quality Act (DQA) lawsuit was filed Feb. 22 in a federal court in California. The suit claims that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are disseminating false and misleading information regarding the health benefits of marijuana. The lawsuit is another test of the judicial reviewability of DQA, which enables groups and members of the public to challenge the data quality of federal government information.

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In Congress, No Shortage of Fuel Economy Proposals

In Washington, legislators and White House officials continue to debate reform of the federal standard for vehicle fuel efficiency. Democrats and Republicans have questioned Bush administration officials on the president's proposal to alter the fuel economy standard for passenger vehicles. Members in both chambers of Congress have also proposed bills that would change the standard.

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Scientific Consultant Sparks Controversy over Conflicts of Interest

Recent findings indicate a consultant to a federal reproductive health sciences panel also has industry ties, creating a conflict of interest. The controversy raises concerns about scientific integrity in the federal regulatory process, as well as contractor transparency and responsibility.

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Bush Continues Anti-Regulatory Efforts with Industry Nominee to CPSC

In nominating Michael E. Baroody Mar. 1 to be chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), President Bush demonstrated yet another example since the 2006 elections of his efforts to slow down or roll back government regulation. CPSC is the independent regulatory agency charged with protecting the public against injury and death from a wide range of consumer products.

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One Step Closer to Less Smog

Mar 6, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Yesterday, the EPA's Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) unanimously voted on recommendations to EPA concerning ground-level ozone (or smog), according to BNA news service (subscription). CASAC voted to lower the allowable standard to between 0.060 ppm and 0.070 ppm from its current level of 0.08 ppm. CASAC purposefully used an extra digit so regulators could not manipulate the standard by rounding. And you thought you would never use significant figures after high school. CASAC's recommendation is similar to that of an EPA staff paper released in January. The EPA should now adopt the recommendation when it revises the standard which the Clean Air Act requires EPA to do every five years. Though based on sound science and developed by bright minds, the CASAC recommendation took some guts too. Industry has been vocal in opposing a tighter standard on smog. Also, EPA has been meddling with CASAC's ability to act independently, as a recent Senate oversight hearing uncovered. EPA has until Mar. 2008 to make its final decision, but with this administration it's never too early to start urging administrators to prioritize science and the public interest ahead of politics and special interests.

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Bush Nominates Manufacturing Ally to CPSC

Mar 2, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Thursday, President Bush nominated Michael Baroody to be a commissioner on the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Baroody is the current executive vice president of the National Association of Manufacturers, a trade group whose mission includes "shaping a legislative and regulatory environment" on behalf of manufacturers. Baroody's ability to shape America's regulatory environment will take on new meaning if he becomes a CPSC commissioner. The CPSC is the independent agency charged with protecting the public from dangerous products. The commissioners (of which there are only three) must be able to work with manufacturers to assess product safety, but also exert authority when industry cooperation does not go far enough in protecting the public. If you think a commissioner with such obvious strong ties to the industry he must regulate is a bad idea, you are not alone. Public interest groups are already sounding the alarms, and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) says she will give the nomination "thorough scrutiny," according to the LA Times. As Reg•Watch has blogged in the past, the CPSC has been short a commissioner since July, and its voting quorum recently expired. I find it depressing to have to contemplate which is worse: a commissioner like Michael Baroody, or no commissioner at all.

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