FDA Tobacco Regulation Bill Enriches Lobbyists

A lobbying firm has been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars, including $160,000 in the first half of 2007, to lobby for the FDA tobacco regulation bill, by Altria (Philip Morris), the nation’s largest tobacco company.

The bill supposedly seeks to protect the public health, but a news story notes that the true motivation behind the FDA tobacco regulation bill may be a big company’s desire to kill off its smaller competitors. “Altria, the largest U.S. tobacco company, is better positioned to operate under regulation than competitors,” it observes.

An editorial in a campus newspaper describes how the FDA tobacco regulation bill was gerrymandered to suit Altria’s interests, rather than the public interest.

The bill has also drawn criticism on health grounds, and charges that it would violate international trade treaties.