U.S. Senate Panel Approves $200 Million for FDA to Crack Down on Illegal E-Cigarettes and Nicotine Pouches, and Urges Faster Product Reviews

【By 2Firsts】On July 10, 2025, the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee approved the “FY2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act” by a vote of 27-0, providing $27.1 billion in discretionary funding.

The bill has only been approved by the committee and has not yet been voted on by the full Senate. It still needs to be reconciled with the House version and signed by the President to take legal effect. Nevertheless, the document serves as an important policy signal and often prompts the FDA to prepare enforcement plans in advance.

In the section titled “Increased Enforcement Action Against Unauthorized E–Cigarettes and Tobacco Improvements,” the committee elaborated on its concerns and directives regarding e-cigarettes.

In the section titled “Increased Enforcement Action Against Unauthorized E–Cigarettes and Tobacco Improvements,” the committee elaborated on its concerns and directives regarding e-cigarettes.

$200 Million Dedicated to Enforcement, Interagency Task Force to Crack Down on Illegal Chinese E-Cigarettes

Youth Usage:

The committee expressed deep concern over data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey, which showed that 1.63 million youth in the U.S. use e-cigarettes. The committee urged the FDA to use all its authority to address this serious public health issue.

Illegal Imports:

The committee expressed serious concern over the large influx of flavored disposable e-cigarettes and nicotine pouch products from China, which blatantly circumvent FDA regulatory requirements. The committee stated that these illegal imported products pose an “unusual and special threat” to public health in the United States.

Funding and Enforcement Directives:

The committee directed the FDA to allocate at least $200 million in FY2026 for enforcement activities to ensure that illegal products are swiftly removed from the market and to take strict compliance and enforcement actions against illegal importers and distributors. Within this $200 million, $2 million will be used to support the federal interagency task force established in June 2024 to combat illegal distribution and sales of e-cigarettes.

Interagency Task Force

The task force, composed of the FDA, Department of Justice, Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Federal Trade Commission, will be responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive strategy to reduce the presence of unauthorized e-cigarettes in the market. The task force is required to report its enforcement actions to Congress on a quarterly basis.

Review and Market Authorization

The committee expressed concern over the FDA’s failure to complete reviews of many e-cigarettes and other “deemed tobacco products” that are popular among youth, resulting in the widespread sale of unauthorized products on the market.

The committee stated that the widespread presence of these unauthorized products is hindering efforts to reduce youth use of e-cigarettes and other tobacco products.

The committee urged the FDA to expeditiously complete premarket reviews of e-cigarettes and to deny authorization for any products that do not meet the statutory standard of “appropriate for the protection of public health,” especially flavored products that may increase the likelihood of use among youth or non-tobacco users.

The FDA is required to take all legally authorized remedial measures to ensure that all illegally sold products are removed from the market.

Encouraging Development of Youth Nicotine Cessation Therapies

Usage Data:

The committee noted data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2024 survey, which showed that nearly 8% of high school students reported using e-cigarettes in the past 30 days.

Treatment Needs:

With more than 2.5 million young people using e-cigarettes, there is a need to develop nicotine cessation therapies specifically for youth.