New regs for Wednesday: Air pollution, gay marriage, liquid tobacco

Wednesday’s edition of the Federal Register contains new rules for liquid nicotine used in electronic cigarettes, air pollution standards for airplanes, and a recognition of same-sex marriage by a federal agency.

Here’s what is happening:

Tobacco: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is considering new regulations for liquid nicotine.

The FDA issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking Tuesday, indicating it intends to regulate liquid nicotine products that come in the form of drinks, gels, lotions, or dissolvables.

The rules could include new nicotine exposure warnings and child-resistant packaging for liquid nicotine that is often used in electronic cigarettes.

This comes as the FDA is looking to expand its jurisdiction to e-cigarettes. Once that rule is complete, the agency intends to issue more specific regulations for novel tobacco products such as these liquid nicotine devices.

The public has 60 days to comment.

Gay marriage: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is updating its rules to recognize same-sex marriage in the wake of the landmark Supreme Court ruling.

The SEC will now interpret rules pertaining to “spouses” and “marriage” to include same-sex couples who are married.

The changes go into effect immediately.

Air pollution: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to blame airplanes for air pollution.

The EPA would “determine that greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere endanger the public health and welfare of current and future generations.” The agency would find that carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride are the biggest causes of air pollution.

The EPA would then determine that certain airplane engines are contributing to climate change, and push for an international aircraft emissions standard.

The public has 60 days to comment.