Cigar regs criticized

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has gone too far in its bid to regulate the cigar industry, according to Florida Senator Marco Rubio.

Writing in the Tampa Bay Times, Rubio said that the 2016 FDA rule finalized by the Obama administration threatens the livelihood of America’s premium cigar manufacturers and retailers.

“The rule was intended to protect children from cigarettes and other tobacco products marketed to youth,” he wrote. ‘I agree that children should not be targeted for tobacco consumption. However, the federal government’s own research proves what we already knew—children are not smoking hand-rolled premium cigars, and those manufacturers are not marketing premium cigars to kids. This rule’s practical effect will be devastating for the premium cigar industry.”

Rubio has been an outspoken advocate for the premium cigar industry. In April, he held a field hearing in Tampa, Florida, about FDA regulations. Earlier this year, he reintroduced a bill to exempt the handmade cigar industry from FDA regulation. In July 2018, he referred to the FDA regulations on cigars as “the epitome of government overreach” during a speech on the Senate floor.

“If the FDA fails to recognize that the practical effect of its rule will put America’s premium cigar industry out of business,” Rubio wrote, “Congress must act to save this iconic industry.”