SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Uniformity
for Food Act of 2001’’.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL UNIFORMITY FOR FOOD.
(a) NATIONAL UNIFORMITY.—Section 403A(a) of the
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 343–
1(a)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the
end;
(2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period and
inserting ‘‘, or’’; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(6) any requirement for a food described in
section 402(a)(1), 402(a)(2), 402(a)(6), 402(a)(7),
402(c), 404, 406, 408, 409, 512, or 721(a), that is
not identical to the requirement of such section.’’.
(b) UNIFORMITY IN FOOD SAFETY WARNING NOTI-
FICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Chapter IV of such Act (21
U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is amended—
(1) by redesignating sections 403B and 403C
as sections 403C and 403D, respectively; and
(2) by inserting after section 403A the fol-
lowing new section:
‘‘SEC. 403B. UNIFORMITY IN FOOD SAFETY WARNING NOTI-
FICATION REQUIREMENTS.
‘‘(a) UNIFORMITY REQUIREMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub-
sections (c) and (d), no State or political subdivision
of a State may, directly or indirectly, establish or
continue in effect under any authority any notifica-
tion requirement for a food that provides for a warn-
ing concerning the safety of the food, or any compo-
nent or package of the food, unless such a notifica-
tion requirement has been prescribed under the au-
thority of this Act and the State or political subdivi-
sion notification requirement is identical to the noti-
fication requirement prescribed under the authority
of this Act.
‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of paragraph
(1)—
‘‘(A) the term ‘notification requirement’ in-
cludes any mandatory disclosure requirement
relating to the dissemination of information
about a food by a manufacturer or distributor
of a food in any manner, such as through a
label, labeling, poster, public notice, advertising,
or any other means of communication, except
as provided in paragraph (3);
‘‘(B) the term ‘warning’, used with respect
to a food, means any statement, vignette, or
other representation that indicates, directly or
by implication, that the food presents or may
present a hazard to health or safety; and
‘‘(C) a reference to a notification require-
ment that provides for a warning shall not be
construed to refer to any requirement or prohi-
bition relating to food safety that does not in-
volve a notification requirement.
‘‘(3) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section
shall be construed to prohibit a State from con-
ducting the State’s notification, disclosure, or other
dissemination of information, or to prohibit any ac-
tion taken relating to a mandatory recall or court in-
junction involving food adulteration under a State
statutory requirement identical to a food adultera-
tion requirement under this Act.
‘‘(b) REVIEW
OF
EXISTING
STATE
REQUIRE-
MENTS.—
‘‘(1) EXISTING STATE REQUIREMENTS; DEFER-
RAL.—Any requirement that—
‘‘(A)(i) is a State notification requirement
for a food that provides for a warning described
in subsection (a) that does not meet the uni-
formity requirement specified in subsection (a);
or
‘‘(ii) is a State food safety requirement de-
scribed in paragraph (6) or (7) of section 403A
that does not meet the uniformity requirement
specified in that paragraph; and
‘‘(B) is in effect on the date of enactment
of the National Uniformity for Food Act of
2001,
shall remain in effect for 180 days after that date
of enactment.
‘‘(2) STATE
PETITIONS.—With respect to a
State notification or food safety requirement that is
described in paragraph (1), the State may petition
the Secretary for an exemption or a national stand-
ard under subsection (c). If a State submits such a
petition within 180 days after the date of enactment
of the National Uniformity for Food Act of 2001,
the notification or food safety requirement shall re-
main in effect until the Secretary takes all adminis-
trative action on the petition pursuant to paragraph
(3), and the time periods and provisions specified in
paragraph (3) shall apply in lieu of the time periods
and provisions specified in subsection (c)(3) (but not
the time periods and provisions specified in sub-
section (d)(2)).
‘‘(3) ACTION ON PETITIONS.—
‘‘(A) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 270
days after the date of enactment of the Na-
tional Uniformity for Food Act of 2001, the
Secretary shall publish a notice in the Federal
Register concerning any petition submitted
under paragraph (2) and shall provide 180 days
for public comment on the petition.
‘‘(B) TIME PERIODS.—Not later than 360
days after the end of the period for public com-
ment, the Secretary shall take final agency ac-
tion on the petition.
‘‘(C) JUDICIAL
REVIEW.—The failure of
the Secretary to comply with any requirement
of this paragraph shall constitute final agency
action for purposes of judicial review. If the
court conducting the review determines that the
Secretary has failed to comply with the require-
ment, the court shall order the Secretary to
comply within a period determined to be appro-
priate by the court.
‘‘(c) EXEMPTIONS AND NATIONAL STANDARDS.—
‘‘(1) EXEMPTIONS.—Any State may petition
the Secretary to provide by regulation an exemption
from paragraph (6) or (7) of section 403A(a) or
subsection (a), for a requirement of the State or a
political subdivision of the State. The Secretary may
provide such an exemption, under such conditions as
the Secretary may impose, for such a requirement
that—
‘‘(A) protects an important public interest
that would otherwise be unprotected, in the ab-
sence of the exemption;
‘‘(B) would not cause any food to be in
violation of any applicable requirement or prohi-
bition under Federal law; and
‘‘(C) would not unduly burden interstate
commerce, balancing the importance of the pub-
lic interest of the State or political subdivision
against the impact on interstate commerce.
‘‘(2) NATIONAL STANDARDS.—Any State may
petition the Secretary to establish by regulation a
national standard respecting any requirement under
this Act or the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act
(15 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) relating to the regulation
of a food.
‘‘(3) ACTION ON PETITIONS.—