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The proposed rule is a tobacco product standard that would establish a maximum nicotine level in cigarettes and certain other finished tobacco products. 

Statement of Need:

Each year, 480,000 people die prematurely from a smoking-attributed disease, making tobacco use the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States. Nearly all these adverse health effects are ultimately the result of addiction to the nicotine in combusted tobacco products, leading to repeated exposure to toxicants from those products. Nicotine is powerfully addictive. The U.S. Surgeon General has reported that 87 percent of adult smokers start smoking before age 18, and half of adult smokers become addicted before age 18. This proposed rule is a tobacco product standard that would establish a maximum nicotine level in cigarettes and certain other finished tobacco products. Because tobacco-related harms primarily result from addiction to products that repeatedly expose users to toxins, FDA would take this action to reduce addictiveness of certain tobacco products, thus giving addicted users a greater ability to quit. This product standard would also help to prevent experimenters (mainly youth) from initiating regular use, and, therefore, from becoming regular smokers. The proposed product standard is anticipated to benefit the population as a whole, while also advancing health equity by addressing disparities associated with cigarette smoking, dependence, and cessation.

Summary of the Legal Basis:

Section 907 of the FD&C Act authorizes the adoption of tobacco product standards if the Secretary finds that a tobacco product standard is appropriate for the protection of public health, and includes authority related to provisions for nicotine yields in tobacco product standards.

Alternatives:

In addition to the costs and benefits of the product standard as proposed, FDA plans to assess the costs and benefits of a different effective date for the rule and the impact of including additional tobacco products in the product standard.

Anticipated Costs and Benefits:

The anticipated benefits of the product standard include benefits from reduced death and disease resulting from decreased tobacco use among adult consumers, reduced death and disease from secondhand smoke, and reduced death and disease among youth who are deterred from initiating under the product standard. The qualitative benefits of the proposed rule include impacts such as reduced illness and increased productivity for smokers and nonsmokers, as well as reduced smoking-related fires, cigarette litter, and other environmental impacts.

The proposed rule is expected to generate compliance costs on affected entities, such as one-time costs to read and understand the rule and alter manufacturing and importing practices; costs to some consumers, such as search costs to research substitute products and temporary withdrawal costs, and enforcement costs to the government.

Risks:

None.