[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9988 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9988

 To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to include barley, 
     rye, and oats as major food allergens, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 30, 2026

Mrs. Luna (for herself, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. Gosar, Mr. Barrett, Mr. 
 Van Drew, Mr. Meuser, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
  Suozzi, Ms. Pingree, and Mr. Rulli) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to include barley, 
     rye, and oats as major food allergens, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, 
Education, and Research Act of 2026'' or the ``FASTER Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF BARLEY, RYE, AND OATS AS MAJOR FOOD ALLERGENS.

    (a) In General.--Section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (qq)(1), by striking ``wheat'' and 
        inserting ``gluten-containing grain''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(tt) The term `gluten-containing grain' means one of the 
following grains, or a crossbred hybrid of such grains, such as 
triticale:
            ``(1) Wheat, including any species in the genus Triticum.
            ``(2) Rye, including any species in the genus Secale.
            ``(3) Barley, including any species in the genus Hordeum.
            ``(4) Oats, including any species in the genus Avena 
        sativa.''.
    (b) Revision of Manual of Compliance Policy Guides.--Not later than 
1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 
Food and Drugs shall revise each section related to major food 
allergens (as defined in section 201(qq) of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321(qq))) in the Manual of Compliance Policy 
Guides issued by the Food and Drug Administration for purposes of 
implementing the amendments made by this section.
    (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by this section shall apply 
to any food that is introduced or delivered for introduction into 
interstate commerce on or after the date that is 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. REPORT ON CELIAC DISEASE.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services shall submit to the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate a report on--
            (1) surveillance of and collection of data on--
                    (A) the prevalence of Celiac disease in the United 
                States; and
                    (B) the severity of any allergic reaction with 
                respect to a specific food or food ingredient in an 
                individual with Celiac disease;
            (2) any gap in such surveillance or collection of data;
            (3) development of effective diagnostics for Celiac 
        disease;
            (4) any method for preventing the onset of Celiac disease;
            (5) any method for reducing any risk related to living with 
        Celiac disease; and
            (6) development of new therapeutics to prevent, treat, 
        cure, or manage Celiac disease.
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