Dear\u00a0Mr. Myers,<\/p>\n
Thank you for contacting me about the regulations of e-cigarettes recently announced by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).<\/p>\n
One of the greatest costs to consumers and the economy comes when a regulation is so burdensome and overreaching that it threatens to wipe out an entire product or industry. The FDA\u2019s decision to expand its own authority over e-cigarettes could threaten a whole class of businesses and the people who work at them, and it could harm public health by making it harder for consumers to buy products that serve as an alternative to smoking. The regulation forces e-cigarette manufacturers to complete prohibitively costly and time-consuming applications to sell e-cigarette products. As a result, many e-cigarette manufacturers\u2014many of which are small businesses\u2014could be forced to shut down.<\/p>\n
As chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which has broad jurisdiction over federal agencies\u2019 operations, I am committed to holding the FDA accountable.\u00a0I have sent multiple requests for information about the FDA\u2019s e-cigarette regulation so the committee and the American public may fully understand the FDA\u2019s rulemaking and its consequences for small businesses and the public\u2019s health. As of July 15, 2016, the agency\u2019s responses have been inadequate.<\/p>\n
I asked the FDA how many e-cigarette businesses it expects will be affected by the rule. The FDA gave an inadequate response that lacked the necessary details. The FDA said it did not possess some important information about the economic effects of the rule, writing that \u2018[t]he baseline number of manufacturers and importers of [e-cigarette] products is uncertain.\u2019 Without such basic information, it is impossible for the agency to weigh costs and benefits as it is required to do.<\/p>\n
I will continue to fight on behalf of Wisconsinites and the American people in order to get complete answers from the FDA and to ensure that the agency remains transparent in its rulemaking.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Sincerely,<\/p>\n
Ron Johnson
\nUnited States Senator<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
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