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Journal of Science Policy & Governance | Volume 18, Issue 01 | March 24, 2021

Policy Memo: A Proposal for FDA Oversight of Tear Gas​

Lauren Wagner (1), Zoe Guttman (1), Yuki Hebner (2), Conner S. Philson (3)
  1. University of California, Los Angeles, Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program, Los Angeles, CA
  2. University of California, Los Angeles, Molecular Biology Interdepartmental Program, Los Angeles, CA
  3. University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Los Angeles, CA

Corresponding Author: [email protected]
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https://doi.org/10.38126/JSPG180115
Keywords: tear gas; crowd control; chemical weapons; public health; protests; regulation; CS gas
Executive Summary: Tear gas is designated a chemical weapon by multiple treaties that prohibit its use in war. However, despite mounting reports suggesting that tear gas may endanger targets beyond transient discomfort, its domestic use as a crowd control mechanism has not been adequately studied, nor is its use regulated by any United States government agency. Without comprehensive and demographically-representative epidemiological studies, the continued use of tear gas on civilian protesters poses an unknown and potentially severe threat to public safety. Chemical substances employed on civilians for a desired effect are more akin to drugs than to weapons. We, therefore, propose that legislation be introduced to place tear gas under the regulatory purview of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to understand its effects on the health of all members of the public and to better regulate its deployment.

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Lauren Wagner is a doctoral student of Neuroscience at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she uses fMRI, and behavior, and genetics to understand the neural bases of language development. She is currently the Secretary of the Science Policy Group at UCLA and enjoys researching issues in science policy/diplomacy and linguistic equity within the global scientific sphere. Lauren received her bachelor’s degrees in Neuroscience and Linguistics from the University of Texas at Austin.
 
Zoe Guttman is currently completing the Interdepartmental PhD Program for Neuroscience at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her research stands at the intersection of cognitive neuroscience, behavioral economics, and addiction to understand decision-making under conditions of risk and uncertainty. Zoe holds a BS in Neural Science and Psychology from New York University. She is also the co-founder and president of the Science Policy Group at UCLA.
 
Yuki Hebner is a student in the Gene Regulation, Epigenomics, and Transcriptomics PhD program at the University of California, Los Angeles. She studies chromatin remodeling during human corticogenesis to understand the epigenetic drivers of neuropsychiatric diseases. Previously, she studied histone biology at Wesleyan University. She is the internal vice president of the Science Policy Group at UCLA.
 
Conner S. Philson is a Ph.D. Student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA studying the evolution and consequences of social behavior using the yellow-bellied marmot population at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (RMBL) in Colorado. His science policy work focuses on combating climate change, environmental degradation, and loss of biodiversity by communicating science to voters and policy makers. He plans to pursue a career in science policy/diplomacy.
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