Rep. Pallone and Rep. Jason Chaffetz take key positions on key committees
Rep. Pallone is co-chair of the Congressional Dietary Supplement Caucus, and his appointment was welcomed by the dietary supplement trade associations.
Michael McGuffin, President of AHPA, said: “The herbal products industry congratulates Rep. Pallone on his appointment as ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
“As the popularity of herbal products continues to grow, it is critical that the industry is well represented on this influential committee. AHPA looks forward to working with Rep. Pallone and the rest of the committee to promote the responsible commerce of herbal products.”
Among the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s broad jurisdiction are several areas that impact the industry, including food, drug and supplement safety, consumer protection, public health research, environmental quality, and interstate and foreign commerce, explained AHPA in an update.
Rep. Pallone beat Rep. Eshoo by ten votes (100-90) to replace Waxman, despite support for the latter from House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
‘A critical committee’
Pallone’s co-chair on the Dietary Supplement Caucus, Jason Chaffetz, (R-UT), was also celebrating after he won the race to become chairman of the House Government Reform Committee.
According to Patricia Knight and Peter Reinecke, Senior Political Advisors for the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA), this was a significant achievement given he was fifth in line for the leadership spot. “While the Government Reform Committee does not write legislation on supplement issues, it is a critical committee in that it has oversight authority over all federal agencies including FDA and FTC,” they explained.
“Rep. Chaffetz represents Provo, Utah, and has a strong interest in supplement issues; he could use his new position to hold hearings and/or other forms of oversight related to supplement regulation by FDA and FTC. Note that Rep. Chaffetz led the bipartisan House letter to FDA in 2011 critical of the agency’s initial draft NDI guidance.”
