21 U.S.C. § 372 — Examinations and investigations

(a) Authority to conduct. (1)(A) The Secretary may run examinations and investigations under this chapter using the Department's own staff, or state, territorial, or local health, food, or drug officers commissioned by the Secretary. (B)(i) For tobacco products, the Secretary must, where feasible, contract with states to inspect retailers as part of enforcing this chapter. (ii) The Secretary cannot make such a contract to enforce this chapter on Indian country without the written consent of the tribe involved. (2)(A) The Secretary may also run examinations and investigations through another federal agency's staff, under a memorandum of understanding with that agency, as long as the memorandum ensures the staff are properly trained and addresses reimbursement — which the other agency's head can require in whole or in part. (B) Such a memorandum only applies to facilities or locations that both the Secretary and that other agency jointly regulate. (C) For any year this kind of joint inspection happens, the Secretary and the other agency must each report to Congress how many staff took part, how many extra items were inspected, and how many extra examinations were carried out. (3) For food packed in Puerto Rico or a U.S. territory, the Secretary must try to inspect it at its first point of entry into the states, if resources and enforcement needs allow. (4) In this subsection, "United States" means the states and the District of Columbia. (b) Availability to owner of part of analysis samples. When the Secretary collects a food, drug, or cosmetic sample for analysis, the Secretary must, if asked, give part of that sample to anyone named on the label, the owner, or their attorney or agent — for their own examination — except that the Secretary can set reasonable exceptions and conditions on this by regulation. (c) Records of other departments and agencies. Records held by any other federal department or agency must be open to inspection by a Department official the Secretary authorizes, for enforcing this chapter. (d) Information on patents for drugs. When the head of the Patent and Trademark Office asks, the Secretary must give complete information about drug questions relevant to a patent application, and may also do or order research needed to answer such a request. (e) Powers of enforcement personnel. The Secretary may give special powers to Department staff assigned to counterfeit-drug cases under this chapter. Such an officer may: (1) carry firearms; (2) execute and serve search and arrest warrants; (3) carry out a seizure ordered by a court under section 334; (4) arrest without a warrant for offenses under this chapter involving these drugs, if the offense happens in the officer's presence, or — for a felony — if the officer has probable cause to believe the person committed or is committing it; and (5) before a court case is filed under section 334(a)(2), seize drugs, containers, or equipment used to make fake drugs, if the officer has reasonable grounds to believe they are subject to seizure under that section. If the officer seizes property this way, the court case under section 334(a)(2) must be filed promptly, and the seized property stays under the court's control.