House Committee Passes Common Sense Menu Labeling Bill

The bill would correct problems in the FDA’s menu labeling regulations.

July 28, 2017

WASHINGTON – On Thursday, July 27, the House Energy & Commerce Committee passed H.R. 772, “The Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act,” by a bipartisan vote of 39 to 14. All Republicans present voted in favor of the bill and 10 Democrats voted in favor of the bill.

During the committee’s consideration of the legislation, the bill’s sponsors, Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Tony Cardenas (D-CA), explained that the issue is not whether caloric disclosure should be required, but how that disclosure takes place. McMorris Rodgers explained that the Food & Drug Administration’s menu labeling regulations are a one-size-fits-all approach and create a costly use of retailers’ time to comply. Cardenas asserted that the bill was simply about flexibility for businesses and highlighted that it does not limit or reduce calorie information available to consumers.

The debate over the bill was marked by opposition from the committee’s ranking member, Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), who argued the legislation is overly broad and would ultimately increase confusion and uncertainty for consumers. He was joined in opposition by Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), who argued the existing rule was necessary to help curb obesity in the U.S. by providing consumers with the caloric information they can use to make healthy choices.

There were two amendments offered to the bill as well. The first amendment, offered by the bill’s sponsors, would shorten the required compliance timeline under the bill and would give the FDA more flexibility in enforcing the new rule that they would draft under the legislation. The amendment was accepted by a voice vote of the committee.

The second amendment, offered by Rep. Kurt Schrader (R-OR), would have stricken the provisions of the bill that would allow establishments who received greater than 50% of their orders remotely (i.e. pizza delivery chains) to post the required caloric disclosure remotely, such as on a website. That amendment failed on a bipartisan vote of 33 to 19.

The House’s amended bill now awaits consideration by the full House of Representatives. NACS hopes that the House will consider the legislation in September after Congress returns from the August district work period. Similar legislation was passed by the House in 2016, but was not considered by the Senate before the end of the legislative session. 

The Senate sponsors of the legislation, Sens. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Angus King (I-ME) are actively looking for ways to move the bill, but the chamber is currently occupied with action related to the health care legislation.

Stay tuned for more updates as the bill continues to progress through Congress. 

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