Stogie Guys Free Newsletter

Subscribe today for a chance to win great cigar prizes:


Presented by:

Stogie Guys Friday Sampler No. 479

13 May 2016

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. Below is our latest Friday Sampler.

petition-FDA

1) In response to the FDA’s announcement last week (which included some very misleading statements) of its final rule regulating cigars, where the FDA rejected its own option to exempt premium cigars, Cigar Rights of America (CRA) has launched another petition to the White House. Readers may recall that in 2012, years prior to the FDA proposal, a similar petition garnered enough support to warrant the eventual response by the director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products. Back then, he stated the “FDA has heard the input from stakeholders about the possible differences in the public health impact of premium cigars compared to other cigars. We are taking this into account as we consider potential regulatory options around the categories of cigars.” Obviously, given the final rule, the pleas of the over 40,000 signers of that petition were ignored.

2) While signing the petition to the White House is certainly worthwhile, a second petition launched by CRA is directed at the branch of government that, at this point, is more likely to take complaints seriously. The CRA’s petition to Congress lets Americans demand their representatives “support S. 441 and H.R. 662, which would exempt premium cigars from FDA regulation and oversight, as well as to support language adopted by the House Committee on Appropriations on April 19, 2016, calling for an exemption for premium cigars from FDA oversight.” At this point, barring an intervention by Congress or an intervention by the courts, the FDA rule will go into effect on August 8, 2016.

3) The FDA’s overreach to regulate handmade premium cigars has already found some critics in Congress. Notably, Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, a three-time co-sponsor of the bill to exempt premium cigars from FDA regulation, released a statement excoriating the Obama Administration and the FDA: “The FDA’s announcement today that it plans to regulate all tobacco products is just another example of the Obama Administration’s regulatory overreach and nanny-state mentality. This regulation takes an overly-broad approach to regulating these products. While we can all agree that tobacco products should not be marketed to children, I still believe that my bipartisan amendment, recently approved by the Appropriations Committee in the Agriculture Appropriations bill, provides the same framework for new tobacco products without needlessly subjecting small businesses to unnecessary regulations and without treating law abiding adults like naïve children.”

4) From the Archives: If reading all the news about the overbearing FDA regulations on cigars has you reaching for a stiff drink, we’ve got you covered there, too. Our A-Z Guide to Bourbon features everything from super-premium, highly acclaimed classics to bottom-shelf hidden gems. If you’re more of a rye fan, check out our Guide to Rye.

5) Deal of the Week: In light of recent events, every cigar smoker has good reason to join Cigar Rights of America, or renew/extend their current membership. If you want to smoke excellent, exclusive cigars while you do so, consider purchasing this Cigar Rights of America Limited Edition Sampler. Each sampler includes a CRA membership (you can also use it to renew your existing membership) with ten exclusive cigars.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: WhiteHouse.gov

Trackbacks and Pingbacks

  1. Commentary: One Man’s Grim Opinion of the FDA Situation | The Stogie Guys - Wednesday, June 1, 2016

    […] Petitions underway in the cigar community seem, to me, unlikely to accomplish anything. One, urging the White House to act, may garner enough signatures, though I doubt it. But even if successful, it will induce only reconsideration, not action. A reversal or exemption would require a monumental change. The chances of that are slim and none, and, as they say, Slim already left town. […]