LACK OF INTEREST IN CONSUMER INTERESTS: FDA’S NARROW PERSPECTIVE ON FOOD LABELING AND LABEL STATEMENTS UNDERMINES A CENTURY OF AGENCY LEADERSHIP

The idea that federal administrative agencies are disconnected from the public is not new. Given the confines of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and agency discretion to create the procedures that an agency uses to develop substantive policies and regulations, federal courts offer the public little recourse for more public participation and recognition of diverse views. Courts cannot declare an “unwise” policy illegal, but they may remand the decision to the agency to provide further justification. As noted by Professor Sax in 1970, “The very fact that sensitive courts perceive a need to reorient administrative conduct in this fashion suggests how insulated such agencies may be from the relevant constituencies.” View More