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A $50 million increase in Food and Drug Administration funding in fiscal year 2012 is an important downpayment in helping the agency work through unprecedented rulemaking on fresh produce safety, industry advocates say.
“(The year) 2012 is going to be one of the most critical years that the FDA has seen in decades,” said Robert Guenther, senior vice president of public policy for Washington, D.C.-based United Fresh Produce Association.
With rulemaking of the Food Safety Modernization law expected to kick into high gear by early January, Guenther said increased funding would give FDA the resources for appropriate and balanced implementation of the regulations.
“Hopefully the FDA will be able to use (the funding) wisely,” Guenther said Dec. 21.
The FDA will receive $2.51 billion in appropriations for fiscal year 2012, up $49 million from fiscal year 2011. The House-passed appropriations saddled FDA with a $280 million cut, but funding was restored and increased slightly when the House and Senate versions of the agency’s appropriation bills were combined in November.
“When you face that ($280 million cut), you are happy to come out with a $50 million increase,” said Steven Grossman, deputy executive director for the Alliance for a Stronger FDA, Silver Spring, Md.
The alliance includes 200 groups and companies advocating for sufficient public funding for the FDA, including the Grocery Manufacturing Association and the Produce Marketing Association, Newark, Del.
Funding for FDA’s oversight of food safety is $866 million, up from $836 million in fiscal year 2011 and $784 million in fiscal year 2010. Congress-approved appropriations include $39 million to begin implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act.
The FDA’s produce safety rule, the import rule and the food facility rule are all expected to be released in early 2012, Guenther said.
Grossman said the focus is now shifting on what President Barack Obama may ask for in his fiscal year 2013 budget request in February.
While the FDA will be funded by a combination of budget appropriations and industry fees, the alliance believes the FDA should be primarily funded with public funds.
Grossman said the alliance will eventually recommend details on FDA funding levels for fiscal year 2013. When the food safety law was evaluated by budget officials, he said the year-to-year increases in FDA funding were estimated at an additional $100 million a year for four years, peaking at $400 million above funding levels before the food safety law.
Grossman said the group does not take positions on FDA proposals for industry user fees. The FDA on Aug. 1 published a notice about establishing new user fees for the establishment of domestic and foreign facility reinspections, non-compliance with recall orders and importer reinspection user fees. As of Dec. 21, no final rules had been issued related to that notice.
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