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[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 15 (Friday, January 23, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3575-3576]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-1650]

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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

Cigarette Testing; Extension of Deadline for Submission of Public 
Comments

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Extension of deadline for submission of comments on proposed

[[Page 3576]]

revisions to the Federal Trade Commission methodology for determining 
tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide yields of cigarettes, and on a 
proposed format for disclosing the resulting ratings in advertising.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') is 
extending until February 4, 1998 the deadline for filing comments on 
its proposed revisions to the testing method used to determine the tar, 
nicotine, and carbon monoxide ratings of cigarettes, and on two 
possible formats for disclosure of those test results.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Shira D. Modell, Division of Advertising Practices, Federal Trade 
Commission, Sixth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, 
D.C. 20580, (202) 326-3116.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On September 9, 1997, the Commission issued 
a notice proposing changes to the methodology currently used to 
determine cigarette ratings for tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide. See 
62 FR 48,158 (Sept. 12, 1997). The proposed methodology would produce 
tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide yields using both the current 
testing parameters and more intensive smoking conditions, thus 
producing a range of potential yields for each cigarette. The 
Commission requested comment on those proposed changes to the testing 
methodology, and on the feasibility of generating the upper tier of 
tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide ratings through mathematical 
formulas, rather than actual testing on a smoking machine. The 
Commission also placed on the public record two different legends that 
could be used in advertising to disclose the ratings and sought comment 
on the usefulness and feasibility of these potential disclosure 
formats. Finally, comment was requested on alternative approaches that 
were considered but not proposed by the Commission. The deadline for 
submission of the requested comments was November 17, 1997.
    On October 29, 1997, the Commission announced that, pursuant to 
requests submitted by, among others, the Food and Drug Administration 
and the four largest cigarette manufacturers, it had decided to extend 
the filing deadline until January 20, 1998. See 62 FR 58,972 (Oct. 31, 
1997).
    The Commission has now received a request for further extension of 
the filing deadline from Prospect Associates, which serves as the 
Coordinating Center for the National Cancer Institute's Project ASSIST 
(American Stop Smoking Intervention Study). The Coordinating Center and 
the 17 states that ASSIST funds seek this extension so they can 
incorporate into their comment newly available data relevant to the 
issues raised by the Commission's proposal, including new data from 
smoking machine tests conducted pursuant to a methodology promulgated 
by Massachusetts.
    In light of the significance of the issues addressed by the 
Commission's September 1997 proposal, the deadline for submitting 
comments on that proposal is hereby extended until February 4, 1998.

    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-1650 Filed 1-22-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-M
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