Analysis
The FDA's authority to regulate came from the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA). The FDA argued that nicotine was a "drug" and cigarettes and smokeless tobacco are "devices" that deliver nicotine to the body within the meaning of the FDCA. Congress had enacted a number of tobacco-specific laws after the FDCA, and the FDA had never exercised any control over tobacco. The Court therefore concluded that Congress did not intend to give the FDA the power to regulate tobacco, and that the regulations were therefore invalid.
Partially as a response to this finding, Congress passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which expressly granted the FDA the power to regulate the tobacco industry. The act was signed into law by President Barack Obama on June 22, 2009.
Read more about this topic: FDA V. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp.