Attorneys General Settlement
Attorneys General Tobacco Settlement News
Archive, November, 1998
Note: These articles wink in and out of existence with the frequency of sub-atomic particles. Many links will be dead. In that case, these pages can be approached as bibliographies, both noting the event, and showing where you might look for further information.
AG Settlement RESOURCES
- MASTER SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
- National Association of Attorneys General
- NAAG Tobacco Settlement Page
- NAAG State Approval Page
- National news release
- Tobacco settlement agreement at a glance
- Overview of state dollars
- Detailed breakdown of state dollars (MS Word file)
- Smokeless tobacco settlement agreement
- 2/4/99 Stateline.org
- A RECORD OF PROMISES BROKEN AND AN OPPORTUNITY LOST A Report by the CAMPAIGN FOR TOBACCO-FREE KIDS and the American Heart Association
- Four (of many) Reasons Why States Should Use Settlement Money for Comprehensive Tobacco Control (from a background paper produced by the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids - for a copy of the full text, e-mail kbeckham@astho.org)
- One of the NGA Center¹s top priorities for 1999 is to work with states in their efforts to explore the best ways to expend state tobacco settlement funds. The NGA Center is also gathering data on effective state programs for tobacco prevention and control. . . The NGA Center for Best Practices is assisting Governors and their policy advisors to address the policy, financial, and programmatic implications of the tobacco settlement. The Governors are also working with the National Association of Attorneys General, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and other groups to develop a strategy aimed at preventing federal recoupment of these funds.
- Prevention and Control Activities
- Links to non-government, state government, and federal resources online.
- State Activities and Related Links
- Information from the states, organized by state.
- Foundation for the Prevention of Youth Smoking
- The tobacco settlement agreement establishes a national foundation to study and develop methods to reduce youth¹s use of tobacco products.
- Tobacco Settlement Information for States
- A overview of NGA efforts to prevent the federal government's seizure of state settlement funds to offset federal Medicaid expenditures. Plus links to resources on the NGA web site and the Internet. Last month: 1998 Year in Review If you would like to provide site feedback, contact our Webmaster by e-mail.
- Settlement Agreements
- Industry Advertising Print and TV ads avaialable here.
- Federal Issues The McCain Bill, Healthy Kids Act, etc.
- Chronology of Gov. Hearings 1997-1998
AG Settlement NEWS
- 11/98 ASH Amicus Curiae This is a kind of template for opposition to the settlement, with a list of judges in tobacco cases in the most populous states.
- 11/30/98 Petition to New York Judge Crane to Delay the AG Settlement
- 11/14/98 Tobacco Accord Calls for Industry to Pay $206 Bln, NYT Says Bloomberg News
- Tobacco
companies Philip Morris Cos., RJR Nabisco Holdings Corp., Loews Corp. and British American Tobacco Plc and eight state attorneys
general have agreed to a settlement under which the companies would pay $206 billion over 25 years to eliminate the threat of state suits
seeking to recover the Medicaid costs of treating people with smoking-related illnesses, the New York Times reported
- 11/14/98 Tobacco Companies and 8 States in Tentative Settlement New York Times
- Producers
will pay an additional $25 million a year over the next decade for a foundation that will research ways to reduce youth smoking. They
will also pledge not to market to those under 18. "We have reached an agreement on all the issues," said Christine A. Gregoire, the
Washington State Attorney General. "We are in the final drafting stage and hope to have a settlement sometime Saturday."
- 11/14/98 Big Tobacco, State Officials Reach $206 Billion Deal The Washington Post
- Former Food
and Drug Administration commissioner David A. Kessler . . . said he has no strong feelings this time. "It's all about money," he said,
"and there's very little in it for public health." Mary Aronson, a Washington-based litigation analyst, said the critical issue in the
coming days "is how many states agree. If not enough do or key ones don't, then the whole thing unravels." States have until Friday to
decide whether they will join the settlement. If a "critical mass" fails to sign on, the industry will abandon the deal, according to
sources familiar with the negotiations. "A critical mass is going be one of those things that you can't define -- but you'll know it when
you see it," said North Carolina Attorney General Mike Easley (D).
- 11/14/98 Tobacco Deal's Details Are Set Winston-Salem Journal
- Negotiators in New York were still finishing the details of
the complex deal yesterday. They are scheduled to make a formal announcement Monday in Washington. But public-health groups and
state officials already are weighing in with widely divergent reactions.
- 11/14/98 US cigarette makers to pay
states $250bn Financial Times
- US cigarette makers on Friday struck a deal requiring them to pay out $250bn over
the next 25 years to end the worst of the litigation they face. . . The deal was struck between the big cigarette manufacturers and eight of the
38 states suing them for the cost of treating smoking-related illnesses. Details of the package are expected to be announced on Monday. The
other 30 states will then be given about a week to sign up.
- 11/14/98 LEX Smoke
clears Financial Times
- Admittedly, this settlement does not confer the total immunity promised by the $516bn
deal which collapsed this spring. But it is much cheaper, does not require congressional approval and the companies have lately been
winning individual suits in the courts.
- 11/14/98Tobacco Deal Would Disband Controversial Research Center The Baltimore
Sun
- According to a draft posted yesterday on the Web site of the Arizona Republic newspaper, the tobacco settlement would
disband the CENTER FOR INDOOR AIR RESEARCH, along with the COUNCIL FOR TOBACCO RESEARCH and the TOBACCO INSTITUTE, other longtime
targets of industry critics. But in one of a number of apparent loopholes in the draft, the language appears to permit the industry to set
up replacement organizations. . . one clause permits tobacco posters to be displayed not only in stadiums and shopping malls but also in
"video game arcades," an odd feature for a deal ostensibly aimed at curbing youth smoking. Another clause would permit the sale, after
March 31, 2001, of packs containing fewer than 20 cigarettes.
- 11/12/98 DRAFT AGREEMENT Some sort of precis from the Arizona Republic. Source?
- 11/13/98 How Draft Of States' Proposed Tobacco Settlement Compares With Past Efforts St. Louis Post-Dispatch
- This is how a draft of the tobacco settlement in the works compares on some key issues with its two recent predecessors -- a
settlement deal announced in June 1997 and legislation sponsored by Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
- 11/13/98Tobacco Cos. to Pay $6.9 Bln in Accord's 1st Year, Paper Says Bloomberg News
- U.S.
tobacco companies would pay $6.9 billion to states in the first year of a proposed legal settlement of health-related lawsuits, according
to a draft of the agreement posted on the Arizona Republic newspaper's web site.
- 11/13/98 According to John F. Banzhaf of Action on Smoking and Health Details of Secret National Tobacco Deal
Posted PR Newswire
- Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) will be asking judges in many of the states affected to
withhold approval of any formal settlements until public health organizations and others have had an opportunity to review its sufficiency. Of
particular concern to ASH is that the attorneys general are reportedly not planning to make the actual text of the deal public until after it is
signed, thereby making careful public scrutiny impossible.
- 11/13/98 $206 Billion Tobacco Deal Ready ABC News
- After five months of secret talks, negotiators for Big
Tobacco and eight states have finished work on a massive anti-smoking settlement initiative that could cost the industry $206 billion over 25
years.
- 11/13/98 Tobacco Deal Acceptance Rests On State Participation Reuters
- For example, a New
York-based group called Action Alert sent messages to anti-smoking groups in all 50 states supplying them with the names of their
attorneys general and the office phone numbers. "Please call your attorney general's office and ask that the public be given 30 days to
review the settlement. Any deal that can't withstand 30 days of public scrutiny is a bad deal," the message said. Gregoire bristled over
complaints that the negotiations were kept too secret. "This is litigation. There is nothing unusual about what we're doing here," she
said. "It's not legislation that everyone comments on." . . "This is risk free," she said of the settlement proposal. "The courtroom is not.
Our job was to make sure that every state is a winner."
- 11/13/98 Both Sides Give A Little In Potential Tobacco Agreement Star-Telegram
- The framework for what would
be a third recent attempt to address America's tobacco habit has a modesty that reflects some of the tobacco industry's major legal and political
victories this year. But the national settlement proposal now in final negotiations -- and expected to be announced here Monday -- still would
mean big payouts from Big Tobacco.
- 11/13/98 States, Tobacco Seek Settlement AP
- Negotiators were working Friday on final details of a
settlement proposal which would also salvage some anti-smoking initiatives from a broader agreement that collapsed in Congress earlier
this year. "We are still in here trying to finish. We are very, very close," said Washington state Attorney General Christine M. Gregoire,
who has been leading the state negotiators and is in trial against the industry in her home state.
- 11/13/98Deal would curb
tobacco sponsors The Arizona Republic
- A tobacco settlement agreement expected to be announced Monday
would limit tobacco companies to sponsorship of only one event per year under the name of their major tobacco product. That means
RJR Nabisco's Winston cigarettes may have to give up sponsorship of either the Winston Cup series of NASCAR races, one of which
is run at PIR, or forgo the National Hotrod Association Winston Drag Racing Series, a leg of which is held at Firebird.
- 11/14/98 CA:
SAN JOSE: Tobacco accord would aid S.J. San Jose Mercury-News
- A proposed $200 billion nationwide
settlement with the tobacco industry would generate an estimated $23 billion for California over the next 25 years, a figure that would be
divvied up by cities and counties across the state, including San Jose and Santa Clara County. San Jose would receive roughly $287
million, and Santa Clara County's share might exceed $500 million over the life of the agreement, according to lawyers who have analyzed
the tentative settlement, which is expected to be announced formally Monday.
- 11/14/98 NY: 24B Cig Deal Eyed New York Daily News
- New York State would get $24
billion under a soon-to-be announced settlement with the country's major tobacco companies, sources close to the talks said yesterday. .
. The groups also called on state Attorney General Dennis Vacco, who has been representing New York in the talks, to give the public 30
days to comment on the proposed settlement before it is adopted. Vacco spokesman Chris McKenna said the groups had commented
throughout the process even though they were not part of the talks. "They've had plenty of opportunity, and we've listened to them," he
said. "A lot of the provisions of the settlement are reflective of the concerns that have been raised by these and other advocates."
- 11/14/98 NY: How to Spend Tobacco Money? New York Counts the Ways New York Times
- The
deal has not been announced yet, but already there is no shortage of competing proposals for spending New York's $20 billion share of a
reported $206 billion tobacco settlement: things like health care for the uninsured, stop-smoking programs and a cut in property
taxes.
- 11/14/98 MD: Md. Mulls Joining U.S. Tobacco Settlement or Gambling With Lawsuit The Washington Post
- Maryland Attorney General J. Joseph CURRAN (D) has been saying the state has one of the strongest cases against cigarette
makers in the nation. But he said yesterday that he would be meeting with the state's lawyers in the coming days and hoped to make a
decision by the middle of next week. "We think we've got a good case," he said. "Having said that, is it a slam dunk? Well, nothing in life
is a slam dunk."
- 11/12/98 MD: State Has A Week To Make Decision On Tobacco Suit Baltimore (MD) Sun
- Though Maryland has a strong case, state officials are trying to decide whether to pursue a lawsuit against the tobacco industry or join a settlement negotiated by eight other states. Final details of the proposed agreement are still being worked out, and Maryland has until Nov. 20 to make the decision. The decision for Maryland officials is a difficult one because the state is considered to have a strong case
- 11/11/98 MD: State Weighs Tobacco Deal Baltimore (MD) Sun
- Maryland officials will have until Nov. 20 to decide whether to sign on to a tobacco settlement negotiated by eight other states or take a chance on going to trial in April, Attorney General J. JOSEPH CURRAN JR. said last night. The settlement announcement, scheduled for noon Friday, is likely to set off a rushed weeklong debate among state officials and public health experts on the merits of the deal, negotiated largely in secret.
- 11/14/98 VA: Tobacco deadline looms / Not enough time to review pact, Va. health advocates say Richmond Times-Dispatch
- Hilton Oliver, executive director of Virginia GASP, or Group to Alleviate Smoking in Public, was flatly critical. "This is a
sellout. This is not in the public's interest; it is something the attorneys general are trying to grab for their own political benefit before
it's too late," he contended. Lisa Becker, a lobbyist with the American Heart Association's Virginia Council, said . . . "The whole
challenge is going to be getting that money appropriated where it needs to go. That's to public health -- and not to things some other
folks may think it needs to go to, such as roads and schools," said Becker, who attended the briefing by Earley's staff.
- 11/13/98 Leaf deal could net VIRGINIA $3.5 billion Richmond Times-Dispatch
- A deal under negotiation to settle three dozen state
lawsuits against the tobacco industry would bring Virginia at least $3.5 billion over 25 years if all eligible states opted to join the pact.
Virginia's share was disclosed yesterday by a source familiar with the negotiations
- 11/12/98 EARLEY Looking Kindly On Pact / Tobacco Industry, States Could Settle Richmond (VA) Times-Dispatch
- Virginia Attorney General Mark L. Earley was looking favorably yesterday on a $200 billion proposal nearing completion for a national settlement of state claims for treating sick smokers. But Earley had not made a final decision whether to support the pact, said his spokesman, David Botkins.
- 11/14/98 MA: AG mulls option to rejoin tobacco settlement The Boston Globe
- "If Harshbarger
folds on this, everyone else folds," said Richard Daynard, a professor at Northeastern University School of Law and chairman of its
Tobacco Products Liability Project. . . One advocate, Dr. Gregory Connolly, director of the state's Tobacco Control Program, said
Harshbarger's decision will mark a watershed in the antismoking movement. "What Scott decides will ultimately determine how America
will deal with tobacco control over the next 25 years," he said. . . . "Most of the public health provisions appear to be fool's gold," Daynard
said.
- 11/13/98 IL: Health Organizations Urge Disclosure of Tobacco Lawsuit Settlement PR Newswire
- the American Heart Association-Midwest Affiliate, the American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago, the American Cancer
Society, Illinois Division, American Association of Public Health Physicians strongly recommend Illinois Attorney General JIM RYAN
work to make public health principles a key feature of any agreement and allow public health 30 days to review and comment.
- 11/13/98 TN: Tobacco Settlement Reuters
- Governor DON SUNDQUIST says that negotiations are still in
the works, but the state is projected to rece ive about four-point-seven BILLION dollars in the deal.
- 11/13/98 OR: Tobacco Deal Could Bring Big Bucks Reuters
- Oregon Attorney General HARDY MYERS
says the state might get two BILLION dollars over 25 years under a proposed settlement with big tobacco.
- 11/13/98 OH: Possible Tobacco Settlement Evaluated Reuters
- JENNIFER PRICE with the Ohio chapter
of the American Lung Association says the current deal isn't as good as the national settlement announced months ago... but it's not horrible
either. Price says any settlement that does not prohibit future efforts to curb smoking will be moderately acceptable. Ohio stands to gain
eight-to-nine- Million-dollars [sic--should read "Billion"] from this new settlement.
- 11/12/98 OH: Tobacco deal could mean $9B for Ohio Cincinnati (OH) Post
- Between $8 billion and $9 billion could come Ohio's way under a proposed settlement between cigarette makers and states involved in a lawsuit against the tobacco industry over the health costs of smoking.
- 11/13/98 MI: Tobacco-Free Michigan Action Coalition Decries Reports of Tobacco Industry Demands for Ultra-High
Speed Approval of Secretly-Drafted Tobacco Agreement PR Newswire
- " This settlement, if agreed to, will set
tobacco-related public policy and settle Medicaid claims for 25 years to eternity. Yet, the citizens of Michigan, the Attorney General, the
Attorney General-elect, the Governor, the legislature, the public health community, the media -- everyone but the privileged negotiators of
this deal -- will be denied any reasonable opportunity to carefully review this settlement. This is an outrage."
- 11/14/98 WI: Wisconsin may stay
out of tobacco settlement Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
- Jim Haney, a spokesman for Attorney General James
Doyle, said Friday that state lawyers have not yet seen the settlement document and that no decision has been made about whether
Wisconsin would accept the proposed agreement. But he stressed that Doyle will insist on a strong public health component in any
agreement accepted by the state and that Wisconsin is fully prepared to move forward with its own lawsuit against cigarette makers.
- 11/13/98 WI: Attorney general watches tobacco settlement talks Minneapolis Star Tribune
- DOYLE will
likely consider the settlement but his office is continuing with plans to take the case to court next September, state Department of Justice
spokesman James Haney said. " When we filed our lawsuit, we fully expected to take our case to trial, " Haney said. " We will still
continue to work in that direction."
- 11/13/98KY: Tobacco proposal has PATTON concerned Lexington Herald-Leader
- Gov. PAUL PATTON
sounded a disappointed note yesterday about how Kentucky tobacco farmers are likely to fare under a pending national tobacco settlement.
"We have made it known that we want some kind of an extra consideration for the tobacco farmer," Patton said in an interview. "I'm not
going to comment on whether we got our expectations or not, but I'm not smiling a whole lot." . .
- 11/14/98 AL:
Attorney general claims 'assurances' from Tobacco Birmingham News
- Lawyers for Gov. Fob James accused
Attorney General Bill Pryor Friday of costing the state at least $3 billion by not suing the tobacco industry sooner. Montgomery lawyers
Jere Beasley and Walter Byars, who filed suit for James Thursday against more than two dozen tobacco companies, also criticized Pryor
Friday for not telling anyone before now that he had a "secret agreement" with tobacco companies.
- 11/14/98 AL: State leaders
square off over tobacco Birmingham News
- In an extraordinary political standoff with extraordinary amounts of
money at stake, Attorney General Bill Pryor warned Friday that Alabama risked getting nothing if it pursued a tobacco lawsuit instead of
taking the $2.9 billion that is reportedly coming under a national settlement. But attorneys for lame-duck Gov. Fob James, who sued the
tobacco industry Thursday over Pryor's vehement opposition, were optimistic the state could win something close to the $6.1 billion
settlement in Minnesota's lawsuit
- 11/13/98 AL: Alabama Battles Over Tobacco Suit AP
- JAMES, who refused for two years to sue tobacco
companies on the advice of PRYOR, filed a lawsuit against them Thursday. Democratic Gov.-elect Don SIEGELMAN sided with Pryor,
arguing that the lawsuit could deny Alabama any settlement funds and keep the state from getting any money for years. He also blamed
both Pryor and James for blocking his own lawsuit against the tobacco industry in 1996. . . In response, Pryor filed a suit Thursday that
he said is aimed at keeping James from interfering with the national tobacco talks. "We are going to take whatever legal action is
necessary to make Alabama participate in the national settlement," Pryor said.
- 11/12/98AL: Alabama would get nearly $3 billion; but James, Pryor in legal duel AP
- Alabama would get
nearly $3 billion out of the national tobacco settlement that is almost complete, but that's not enough to satisfy Gov. FOB JAMES, who filed
suit Thursday against all of the major tobacco companies. James' legal action quickly turned into a judicial duel with Attorney General BILL
PRYOR, who responded by filing a lawsuit to make sure Alabama participates fully in the proposed national settlement.
- 11/12/98 AL: ALABAMA Wants More From Tobacco Cos. AP
- Alabama would get nearly $3 billion out of the national tobacco settlement that is almost complete, but Gov. Fob James said Thursday he will sue in hopes of getting more. James said he has instructed Montgomery attorney Walter Byars to put together a legal team and go to court quickly on behalf of the state. "I am duty-bound to file a lawsuit against tobacco companies and I intend to do so," James said in a statement.
- 11/13/98 AZ: Tobacco Deal Totals $200
Billion The Arizona Republic
- Negotiators for states with lawsuits still pending against Big Tobacco have struck a
$200 billion, 30-state settlement and say it as the best deal they can get after the collapse of a national agreement earlier this year. Arizona
would receive a minimum of $2.67 billion over the first 25 years of the agreement, with no restrictions on the money's use.
- 11/12/98AZ: Arizona's share of
tobacco settlement: $2.7 billion
- Arizona would receive a minimum of $2.67 billion over the first 25 years of the
agreement, with no restrictions on the money's use.
- 11/12/98 SF: A Tobacco Deal S.F. Can't Refuse The Recorder (Cal Law)
- A proposed $200 billion settlement between 46 state attorneys general and the tobacco industry could land San Francisco as much as $550 million over the next 25 years. And although counties can opt out of the deal, all bets are that City Attorney LOUISE RENNE will take the money and run. "They are paying an extraordinary amount of money," said one tobacco plaintiffs attorney, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "It's not a perfect agreement, but none ever are. This is a bonanza."
- 11/12/98 NH: MCLAUGHLIN Says Tobacco Settlement Is Tradeoff For States Foster's Daily Democrat (Dover, NH)
- An agreement in the works to settle state claims against the tobacco industry is not ideal, but may be the best the states can do, Attorney General PHILIP MCLAUGHLIN said.
- 11/12/98 NC: Tobacco Deal Could Bring N.C. $6 Billion Raleigh (NC) News & Observer
- Two Tar Heels helped hammer out the basic deal during four months of secret talks in New York: state Attorney General Mike Easley and Phil Carlton of Pinetops, a lawyer representing the tobacco industry. The accord gives 37 states with pending lawsuits against the industry, plus nine that didn't file suit, until Nov. 20 to join the settlement. The $200 billion cost to the industry would decrease in proportion to the number of states that decline to participate.
- 11/12/98 CA: CALIFORNIA Eyes Billions From Tobacco Deal Sacramento (CA) Bee
- A tobacco settlement package expected to be announced as early as Friday would bring California more money than any other state -- as much as $25 billion over 25 years -- sources close to the talks indicated Wednesday.
- 11/12/98 Tobacco Settlement Set for Monday, Seen Backed by Most States Bloomberg
- Most U.S. states will support a proposed legal settlement with cigarette makers scheduled to be unveiled Monday, Arizona State Attorney General GRANT WOODS said. "You will have a critical mass of states supporting this, and you will have all of the critical states," Woods said at the MEALEY'S TOBACCO LITIGATION conference in Jacksonville, Florida.
- 11/12/98 Tobacco Firms Are "Getting Off Cheap' San Francisco Examiner
- "We're signing off forever on letting these tobacco guys go, and they're getting off cheap," said PAUL MINICUCCI, executive director of the Next Generation California Tobacco Control Alliance of Sacramento. "We're being railroaded." "They're only giving other states seven days to sign on (to the settlement), and that's a pretty short time," said LISA GOLDMAN, campaign coordinator for Oakland-based Americans for Non-Smokers Rights. "That's like a used-car fire sale," she said. "Several of the AGs are lame ducks, and they're rushing to get this done before they leave." BILL GODSHALL of Pittsburgh, executive director of Smoke Free Pennsylvania, said, "It wouldn't survive the public stink test."
- 11/12/98 A Weaker Settlement? / New Tobacco Deal Not As Strong On Teen Smoking, Critics Say Newsday (Long Island, NY)
- A new multibillion-dollar settlement of state lawsuits against tobacco companies would not have nearly the impact on teen smoking that the original June, 1997, deal would have had, critics and analysts of the industry said yesterday. "This agreement is not a comprehensive plan and does not substitute for the need for Congress to enact a comprehensive plan," said Matt Myers, general counsel for the anti-smoking Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids in Washington, D.C. He helped negotiate the original deal, a version of which died in the Senate this year. "It will have a modest impact on teen smoking," said Gary Black, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.
- 11/12/98 Critics Rip Upcoming Tobacco Settlement Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)
- "The public-health groups are unified over the fact that this is not a great deal," said Stanton Glantz . . . "This isn't the perfect deal," said [IN AG JEFFREY] MODISETT, who also was a key negotiator in the failed settlement of last year. "I was much more comfortable with June of '97."
- 11/12/98 Tobacco Settlement Expected To Be Announced Friday Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune
- Elena Kagan, a domestic policy adviser to President Clinton, said the White House hadn't seen details of the settlement package but was cheered by what it knew. "From what we hear, this is a real step in the right direction," she said. "We give the attorneys general all the credit in the world for having accomplished this. At the same time, it leaves a great deal to be done."
- 11/12/98 US Lawsuits: Relief May Be In Sight Financial Times (UK)
- After a year and a half of on-and-off negotiations, the siege against US cigarette makers appears on the brink of being lifted. . . For cigarette makers, the disadvantage of the new deal is that it will only settle the state lawsuits, leaving them theoretically exposed to the continued threat of class action lawsuits and claims from individual smokers. . . The biggest loser from the new deal appears to be Congress, which has been completely excluded from the negotiations and stands to gain neither the cash nor the regulatory authority it would have achieved from the previous proposal.
- 11/11/98 GARY BLACK: New AG Settlement: Critical Investment Question -- Not When, But How Many? Outperforms Tobacco BBS
- The public's collective apathetic shrug toward tobacco as an issue is likely to push tobacco off the political radar screen once and for all. This week's defeats of anti-tobacco hardliners Humphrey (MN) and Harshbarger (MA), and a razor thin victory margin (13,000 votes of 7 million cast) on California's Prop 10 should send the clear signal that tobacco is a non-issue to the electorateWhile we are concerned that three of the eight AGs who negotiated the AG deal -- Lungren (CA), Vacco (NY), Norton (CO), all who are Republicans -- are effectively lame duck AGs through year-end, we detect a sense of urgency now that this deal be wrapped up before Thanksgiving. This implies a pre-sell of the deal to the AGs next week, with commitments within 5-7 days
- 11/11/98 MI: Tobacco Deal May be Reviewed and Decided in Four Days, Reports American Lung Association of Michigan PR Newswire
- - "Public disclosure of the proposed settlement must be made, with adequate time to read the fine print. Public health must be the only consideration in a tobacco settlement. The settlement must not offer immunity to Big Tobacco, the FDA must be granted the authority to regulate nicotine as a drug and there must be built-in ramifications if tobacco companies fail to curb teen smoking," continued Moore.
- 11/11/98 MI: Tobacco Deal May be Reviewed and Decided in Four Days, Reports American Lung Association of Michigan
PR Newswire
- "A settlement of this magnitude that will set public policy and settle legal claims must be given more
than just a few days to consider. We cannot afford to rush any decisions made with the tobacco industry. Secrecy is very dangerous when
you consider the tobacco industry's past," said Jim Moore, spokesperson for the American Lung Association of Michigan.
- 11/11/98 NJ: Eight State Tobacco Settlement Expected Friday, November 13; State of New Jersey will have option to 'Opt-in' or 'Opt-Out' PR Newswire
- Larry Downs, Project Director, New Jersey BREATHES, New Jersey's leading tobacco-control organization, will be available for comment one hour after the details of the settlement are released on Friday, November 13, 1998.
- 11/11/98 States, Tobacco Industry Near Deal AP
- The negotiators were hopeful of reaching an agreement by the end of the week, but both sides cautioned Tuesday evening that some issues remained unresolved and talks were continuing. "The deal is not done," said Scott Williams, a spokesman for the industry.
- 11/11/98 $200-Billion Pact in Tobacco Case Down to the Final Details LA Times
- Gary Black, a leading tobacco analyst at investment firm Sanford C. Bernstein, said he expects four or five states to hold out, not enough to create problems for the deal. "What's important is that California and New York are part of the deal," Black said. He said Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan and Wisconsin may hold out but that they are not large enough to derail the deal.
- 11/11/98 Several States, Tobacco Concerns Agree on Major Provisions of Deal The Wall Street Journal (pay registration)
- Some remaining fine points are still being drafted, with work expected to continue through Thursday. But the lead negotiator, Washington Attorney General Christine Gregoire, has told her counterparts in other states that an announcement is expected at noon Friday, said several people familiar with the talks.
- 11/10/98 FOCUS-States expected to get tobacco plan by Friday Reuters
- Several sources told Reuters that the attorneys general were told during a conference call on Monday that the bulk of the deal had been worked out and that negotiators hoped to have the completed agreement to all states by Friday. They also said they understood that a public announcement might be made at that time.
- 11/10/98 States, Tobacco Industry Near Deal AP
- Fred Olson, a spokesman for Washington state attorney general Christine Gregoire who has been leading the states' negotiating team, said the two sides "are closer to an agreement but it's premature to say it is done." . . . "The deal is not done," said Scott Williams, a spokesman for the tobacco industry.
- 11/10/98 Tobacco Negotiators Say $200 Bln Pact May Come Friday (Update4)
- Negotiators for eight states and the tobacco industry said they're working out details of a settlement of state lawsuits for as much as $200 billion and plan to unveil an accord Friday. . . Attorneys general for the 38 states would have a week to decide whether to participate, and the size of the settlement depends on how many states join. The two sides will disclose the size of the settlement Nov. 23, the people said.
- 11/14/98 Tobacco Spinoffs, Stock Buybacks Seen Following Settlement Bloomberg News
- The nation's
biggest cigarette producers are expected to announce spinoffs, stock- buyback programs and other major moves now that they're settling
health-related lawsuits with states
- 11/15/98 Big Tobacco, States Reach
Agreement MSNBC
- "We need the Congress to pass legislation to finish the job that the attorneys general have
started, " said Bill Novelli, an anti-tobacco lobbyist with the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. "We need FDA regulation. We need a price
increase in tobacco. We need aid for farmers. We need secondhand smoke to be regulated across the country."
- 11/14/98 APHA Statement on Tobacco Settlement Among Eight States, Industry U.S. Newswire
- Though few details
are available on the contents of the settlement, the American Public Health Association strongly believes that this or any settlement must
include the following: -- A substantial increase in the excise tax for tobacco products to reduce consumption . . . -- Strong look-back
provisions . .
- 11/13/98 Poll:
Use Tobacco Settlement to Reduce Youth Smoking U.S. Newswire
- State officials should use funds from any
tobacco settlement to reduce tobacco use among children, according to results of a telephone poll released today by the CAMPAIGN FOR
TOBACCO-FREE KIDS. The vast majority of those polled in each of 17 states believe that at least half of the money should be used
exclusively to combat tobacco addiction. The survey also found that more voters in each state favor spending the money on tobacco
prevention than on any of the other initiatives that were asked about -- including reducing taxes.
- 11/15/98 NEWS ANALYSIS Tide Turns in the Tobacco Wars New York Times
- But precisely because it only involves state governments, the latest settlement proposal is also likely to return the focus of the nation's debate over smoking back where many people believe it belongs, to Congress and the White House. . . most states, who will have about a week to consider the new deal, are expected to accept. A few that have worked hard to prepare their lawsuits, like Massachusettes, Maryland, Michigan and Wisconsin, may balk and bargain for stiffer terms. But for such officials, the decision between taking billions of dollars in free money for their states and rolling the dice against the industry in court may prove to be their last decision in this round of the tobacco wars.
- 11/15/98 $206b Tobacco Deal / Would Limit Ads, Repay States For Health Costs Newsday (Long Island, NY)
- A news conference is scheduled for tomorrow in Washington, D.C. Attorneys general from 38 other states have until Friday to decide whether they will accept the settlement, and the companies have until Nov. 23 to decide whether enough states have signed on to the deal . . . CALIFORNIA would get the most under the new deal, $23.985 billion, followed closely by NEW YORK, $23.981 billion, said Fred Olson, a spokesman for Attorney General Christine Gregoire of Washington State. The formula reflects Medicaid populations, among other factors.
- 11/15/98 Negotiators Finalize $206 Billion Tobacco Plan Reuters
- States must decide by Friday whether they will sign on to the new proposal. It will then be determined if there are enough participants to proceed with the settlement. The proposal will also be presented to the boards of major tobacco companies.
- 11/14/98 $206B Tobacco Settlement Struck AP
- Negotiators for the nation's four biggest tobacco companies and eight state attorneys general completed their review of the agreement Saturday afternoon. They were shipping copies of the documents to state attorneys general across the country for their approval. ``We have finished,'' said Attorney General Christine M. Gregoire of Washington state, who led the states' team during more than five months of negotiations. ``We have done the best we can do here.''
- 11/15/98 MD: Last-Minute Tobacco Negotiations Underway Washington Post
- Maryland attorneys continued to press for more concessions from tobacco manufacturers during last-minute negotiations in New York yesterday, as Gov. Parris N. Glendening (D) issued a statement promising to "thoughtfully and carefully" consider whether the state should join a national settlement or continue with its lawsuit against the industry.
- 11/15/98 MA: Disappointed HARSHBARGER looks back Boston Globe
- For now, he is focused on giving THOMAS F. REILLY, the incoming attorney general, the kind of smooth transition that he himself never had. His baby, taking on the tobacco industry, weighs on his mind as he talks to Reilly about which direction to take. This week, Harshbarger will decide whether to participate in a new proposed national settlement with the tobacco giants or continue to prepare for a trial in February that would be handled by his successor. [this graph only]
- 11/14/98 Tobacco talks continue into
weekend MSNBC
- Tobacco and state negotiators have been unable to finalize a $200 billion settlement and now
hope to complete the deal this weekend and announce an agreement on Monday, a spokesman said on Friday. A SPOKESMAN for
Washington state Attorney General Christine Gregoire, the lead negotiator for the states, said that other attorneys general were informed
Thursday that they would not receive the final plan on Friday as previously expected. "Our next goal is Monday," said Fred Olson, an aide
to Gregoire.
- 11/16/98 FOCUS-U.S. states unveil
sweeping tobacco agreement Reuters
- ``The attorneys general have before them a tobacco settlement proposal that
would provide the states with $206 billion through the year 2025 -- the largest financial recovery in the history of the world,'' said
Washington Attorney General Christine Gregoire, who led the negotiations.
- 11/16/98 Rodeo riders not thrown in tobacco
deal Reuters
- ``Without U.S. Tobacco there would be no rodeo, and there would be no Western states signing onto
the deal and consequently there would be no deal,'' North Carolina Attorney General Michael EASLEY, a tobacco deal architect, said at a
news conference. Under the proposed settlement, tobacco logos also will be allowed to ride on stock cars and grace golf tournaments, but in
the coming months tobacco companies will have to scale back annual sponsorships to one sport each and pull down billboards in sports
stadiums.
- 11/16/98 CANADA: U.S. tobacco settlement
lure in Canadian legal effort Reuters
- British Columbia, with visions of the rich U.S. tobacco settlement, on
Monday began a quest for Canada's provinces to unite in a legal attack against the cigarette makers. British Columbia officials began a
cross-country trip to recruit partners for a Canadian battle to recoup smoking-related health costs.
- 11/16/98 Tobacco Deal Could Alter Industry AP
- Big Tobacco would be getting relief from one of its
scariest nightmares -- the risk of a big loss to a state over health care claims -- in a $206 billion settlement that may also set the stage for an
industry makeover. . . But critics say the marketing concessions -- no cartoon characters in ads or brand names on caps or duffel bags --
are mild compared to what the industry offered to give up two years ago in a settlement that collapsed in Congress.
- 11/16/98 States Outline Big Tobacco Deal AP
- At least 12 states will sign a $206 billion agreement to settle
lawsuits against the tobacco industry despite complaints that the deal falls far short of an earlier proposal that died in Congress this year.
- 11/16/98 Cigarette Makers
Agree to $206 Billion Settlement of State LawsuitsThat In Part Restricts Some Advertising AP
- At least 12 states
will sign a $206 billion agreement to settle lawsuits against the tobacco industry despite complaints that the deal falls far short of an earlier
proposal that died in Congress this year.
- 11/16/98 Attorneys General
Announce Tobacco Settlement Proposal PR Newswire
- In announcing the settlement, the Attorneys General said
it should be viewed as the beginning, not the end, of tobacco reform in this country. The Attorneys General said ``this is litigation, not
legislation. Congress should pass legislation to provide essential reforms -- including full Food and Drug Administration authority over
tobacco -- we pledge to help them.''
- 11/16/98 Key events in state
suits against tobacco industry CNN
- Spring 1994 Mississippi files the first state suit on behalf of taxpayers
forced to pay sick smokers' health costs. Within weeks, class action lawsuits representing millions of smokers nationwide also are filed
against the tobacco industry.
- 11/16/98 STREAMING
AUDIO: State Attorneys General Announce They Have Reached An Agreement With Four Major U.S. Tobacco Companies
Business Wire
- Listen to streaming audio which contains comments from Steve Parrish, senior vice president, Corporate Affairs,
Philip Morris at http://www.newstream.com/r98-343.shtml
- 11/16/98 AMA: Tobacco
Settlement Doesn't End Need for National Action on Tobacco PR Newswire
- ``The public health community and
the state attorneys general must have sufficient time to digest the key elements of the settlement. In the days ahead, we will analyze the
settlement document to better determine its value and to highlight other areas that must be addressed with congressional action on tobacco
this spring. . . Big Tobacco has done irreparable harm. The settlement dollars must make a public health difference to help end the scourge
of tobacco death and disease.''
- 11/16/98 NE: Tobacco settlement seen
favorable for NEBRASKA Reuters
- Nebraska's Attorney General Don Stenberg said Monday the state is unlikely to
exceed the $1.16 billion it could receive under a proposed tobacco agreement if it rejects the settlement. ``In my opinion it is unlikely that
Nebraska would obtain a judgment of more than one billion dollars if we refuse this settlement and continue our lawsuit,'' he said in a
statement. . . He also noted that, if the state takes its case to trial and wins, the court would not have the authority to impose any of the public
health provisions that have been negotiated.
- 11/16/98 OH: OHIO share of
tobacco deal would be $9 billion Akron Beacon Journal
- Ohio is in line for $9 billion over 25 years through a deal
worked out between eight states and representatives of the tobacco industry, Ohio Attorney General Betty MONTGOMERY announced
Monday. State officials have until Friday to sign onto the deal or proceed with a state lawsuit to recover smoking-related expenses from the
tobacco companies. ``I am very pleased that we now have a settlement proposal after months of hard work,'' Montgomery said in a news
release.
- 11/16/98 CA: CALIFORNIA, NEW YORK
win big under tobacco deal Reuters
- California and New York would be the biggest winners, with each state
receiving about $24 billion under the settlement reached between the tobacco industry and eight state attorneys general.
- 11/16/98 OR: WYDEN Unimpressed With Tobacco Deal Reuters
- U-S Senator Ron Wyden of
Oregon is unimpressed with today's announcement of a 206-BILLION dollar tobacco settlement with several states. The Democrat told a
Washington, D.C. news conference that the settlement ``does virtually nothing to protect the public's health.''
- 11/16/98 PA: PA Attorney
General Fisher, AGs Announce Potential National Settlement of Tobacco Litigation PR Newswire
- "When I
announced Pennsylvania's lawsuit against the tobacco industry in April 1997, I said it was aimed at stopping tobacco companies from
marketing to our kids,'' Fisher said. "I'm pleased to report that this settlement proposal would accomplish that goal by banning outdoor
advertisements and prohibiting tobacco merchandise that have turned our children into walking billboards. Joe Camel and all his smoking
cartoon pals would be blown away.''
- 11/16/98 PA: Pennsylvania
Health Groups Call for Rejection of Multi-State Tobacco Settlement PR Newswire
- ``Instead of achieving the
Attorneys General stated goals of protecting children from tobacco and reimbursing states for Medicaid costs imposed by tobacco, the
tobacco industry's proposal to the state AGs would grant the industry outrageous and unprecedented protections,'' said Coalition Vice
President Bill Godshall.
- 11/16/98 KY: PATTON, Lawmakers Review Tobacco Deal Reuters
- Governor Paul Patton and Kentucky
lawmakers will begin pouring over the proposed tobacco settlement today. Attorneys general from eight states say cigarette makers would
pay 12 BILLION dollars in upfront money over five years under a proposed out-of-court settlement with the tobacco industry
- 11/16/98 Tobacco Industry
Statement on AG Settlement PR Newswire
- While we remain confident in our legal defenses, we are prepared to
accept this proposed agreement as a way to end this unique litigation and join in a common sense approach to addressing important
tobacco issues.
- 11/16/98 States Outline Payment Schedule
Under Tobacco Deal Reuters
- States Attorneys General said on Monday that tobacco firms would pay $12 billion
in upfront money over five years as part of a previously announced $206 billion proposed settlement with tobacco companies. In a
statement, the Attorneys General said the firms would then pay more than $9 billion per year to the states starting in 2008. The $206
billion total would run through 2025
- 11/16/98 White House Says Tobacco Deal Important Step Reuters
- The White House Monday greeted a
proposed $206 billion settlement between states and the tobacco industry as an important step, but said passing national tobacco legislation
was still a top priority.
- 11/16/98 CLINTON
backs tobacco deal CNN
- President Bill Clinton applauded a weekend agreement between cigarette makers and
state attorneys general on Monday, but said the $206 billion deal is only a step in the ongoing tobacco regulation process. Under terms of
the fragile agreement, four tobacco companies will pay for a $1.7 billion anti-smoking educational and research campaign and will
shoulder increased advertising and promotional restrictions. In return, the companies - R.J. Reynolds, Philip Morris, Lorillard and Brown
& Williamson - will be immune to all future civil and criminal lawsuits once they lose a state lawsuit.
- 11/16/98 STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL TO HOLD BRIEFING On Major Tobacco Litigation Development
Bloomberg News
- Attorneys General from six states will hold a media briefing Monday (November 16th) to outline a new
tobacco industry proposal to the states. The news event will take place at 2 p.m. in the First Amendment Lounge, National Press Club [Not on their schedule yet]. To
listen in on the event live, dial 800-633-8492.
- 11/16/98 Gary Black: New Settlement: Less Onerous Payment Stream Could Fuel Positive Revisions. 43-45 States In. Tobacco
BBS
- [This report features the payment schedule; not included in the report is Black's expectation that Clinton will embrace the deal by 3:00PM] The all-in cost of this 47-state settlement will be reported in the press at
$206.3 billion. However, this represents 26 (rather than 25) years of payments, applies a 3% inflation factor to the five initial payments
($2.4 billion per year), and excludes the $100 million UST settlement. Apples-to-apples vs. the June 20 accord ($368.5 billion over 25
years), the all-in-cost of this deal is $197.6 billion.The incremental pricing needed to pay for this 47-state settlement is $.35/pack
cumulatively over four years, with $.30/pack in pricing needed by January 1, 1999 if the industry accrues and increases prices for the
payments due in 2000/1Q in 1999. . . Our sources say that UST has negotiated a separate deal that requires $100 million in initial
payments ($20m upfront, $20m each year 2000-2003), but no ongoing payments
- 11/17/98 TALKING POINT-Tobacco deal may not light up shares Reuters
- In light of the run-up
that has already occurred in some stocks, reasons for a short-term pause include: uncertainty over how many other states sign on to the
accord; fears that demand will be hit by higher prices for cigarettes; and concern over the hundreds of other lawsuits still pending against the
industry. There is also the threat that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration would gain authority to regulate tobacco, analysts warned.
President Bill Clinton on Monday said he would ask the Supreme Court decide whether the FDA had such authority.
- 11/16/98 Wall Street Bullish on Tobacco Deal Newsday
- Wall Street sees Big Tobacco's new $206-billion
settlement of lawsuits with state attorneys general as a big plus for the companies, even though they would pay the biggest amount in the
history of civil litigation. "This puts the litigation wave behind the industry," Gary Black, an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., said
yesterday. "You are basically eliminating the largest litigation risks that depress valuations of tobacco stocks."
- 11/16/98 Big Tobacco Is
Surviving USA Today
- The accord still leaves the industry with hundreds of lawsuits unresolved, says Jack
Maxwell, a securities analyst with Davenport & Co. in Richmond, Va. ''It's a short-term victory, but there's a lot more to come.''
- 11/16/98 Jockeying Starts Over
Tobacco Deal AP
- Several state attorneys general say they are impressed with the proposed $206 billion tobacco
settlement but want to examine the details before deciding whether to sign. . . Tobacco analysts will be watching Massachusetts, Maryland
and Michigan for their reaction. . . Anti-smoking activist Bill Novelli of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids said local public health
officials were being alerted to make sure the money that would go to the states through the year 2025 ``isn't diverted to non-public health
areas.'' ``There is going to a huge food fight over these dollars,'' he said.
- 11/16/98Top
Tobacco Firms Agree to Pay States Up to $206 Billion in 25-Year Settlement The Wall Street Journal
- The
industry also took back many of the concessions it offered in June 1997 in a $368.5 billion proposal . . . Under the new proposal, the
tobacco industry would not accede to regulation by the Food and Drug Administration or be required to print additional and unequivocal
health warnings on cigarette packs. Sports promotions of brand labels and cigarette advertising in retail stores would be permitted, albeit
with some restrictions. And the tobacco companies wouldn't pay any annual penalties if youth smoking doesn't decline in the future, as
they agreed to in 1997.
- 11/16/98 ANTI-SMOKING: Groups call for slower look at proposed deal Financial Times
- The American Heart Association called on the negotiators to disclose full details of the deal - which would end the worst of the litigation they face - and to allow "a reasonable time frame for public review of this important document". Action on Smoking and Health, a not-for-profit anti-smoking group, said it had already started writing to judges in the most populous states urging them to delay approval of the deal pending a public review.
- 11/16/98 WI: Wisconsin
weighing tobacco settlement (11/16/1998) Pioneer Press
- Wisconsin's attorney general praised a $206 billion
agreement eight states reached with the tobacco industry to settle claims over the costs of treating sick smokers, but said Sunday he had not
decided whether to join them.
- 11/16/98 OH: Ohio reviewing
tobacco deal Akron Beacon Journal
- If a proposed settlement between the tobacco industry and state attorneys
general is successful, Ohio would not go forward with its lawsuit -- filed last year -- against tobacco companies, Chris Davey, spokesman
for Ohio Attorney General Betty Montgomery, said yesterday. Eric Brown, Montgomery's lead tobacco negotiator, left New York Saturday
- 11/16/98 NH: N.H.
attorney general to begin reviewing tobacco settlement today Foster's Democrat
- Attorney General PHILIP
MCLAUGHLIN planned to begin reviewing a proposed $206 billion settlement with the tobacco industry today, but says he will take his time
deciding whether to sign onto it.
- 11/16/98 IL: State Tobacco Yield Could Be In Billions Chicago Tribune
- Illinois stands to gain $9.1 billion
during the next 25 years under terms of the proposed settlement between tobacco companies and states to cover smoking-related health
costs, officials said Sunday. "We believe this to be the largest monetary settlement in the history of Illinois," said Dan Curry, a spokesman
for state Atty. Gen. JIM RYAN.
- 11/16/98 NC: Easley
says deal must aid growers Raleigh News & Observer
- Characterizing North Carolina as "in a state of denial on
tobacco," Attorney General Mike Easley called Sunday for part of the $5 billion the state will receive under a historic national tobacco
settlement to be used to aid areas long dependent on tobacco. "I think it would be irresponsible not to take a substantial portion of this
settlement to address the needs of tobacco-dependent communities," Easley said in an interview. "I'm going to be talking with the political
leadership of this state and encouraging them to address this in a meaningful way."
- 11/16/98 WA: GREGOIRE thinks latest tobacco deal will be approved Seattle Times
- "I believe we have
extracted everything that can be extracted from a lawsuit and then some," Gregoire, the lead negotiator in the deal, said in her first extended
interview after settling terms with the tobacco industry over the weekend. "I don't know of any case that has the kind of reform on how a
company does business that this settlement has."
- 11/16/98 WA: Panel recommends money be used on anti-smoking programs AP
- A large chunk
of Washington's share of money from the proposed $4 billion national tobacco settlement should be spent on a wide range of anti-tobacco
programs, from school-based efforts to state-funded stop-smoking programs, a panel of public-health experts recommends. "We have an
historic opportunity to use money we receive to reduce the disease and death caused by tobacco use," the 30-member task force said in a
report submitted to state Attorney General Christine Gregoire.
- 11/16/98 OH: Ohio weighs
tobacco settlement Cincinnati Enquirer
- If a proposed settlement between the tobacco industry and state attorneys
general is successful, Ohio would not go forward with its lawsuit - filed last year - against tobacco companies, Chris Davey, spokesman for
Ohio Attorney General Betty Montgomery, said Sunday.
- 11/16/98 PA: UPCI and
Other Pennsylvania Research Centers Request Tobacco Settlement Money To Ease Cancer Burden, Enhance Research PR
Newswire
- The University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) is joining forces with Fox Chase Cancer Center, Kimmel
Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University, University of Pennsylvania Cancer Center, Temple Cancer Center, Penn State Geisinger
Health System Cancer Center and Wistar Institute to propose that 25 percent of the tobacco settlement be set aside to support the excellent
cancer research these centers are conducting.
- 11/16/98 Sources & Sidebars For Monday, Nov. 16: Tobacco Settlement Bloomberg News
- The following
individuals can provide editors and reporters with commentary and background on this story. They are leading experts with varying
perspectives included in ProfNet's Experts Database. You'll find complete entries at www.profnet.com/ped. [NOTE: Not having contacted
these individuals, we know neither their perspective on recent developments nor their immediate availability.] . . . ProfNet is a collaboration
of 4,100 public information officers linked by e-mail to provide journalists convenient access to expert sources.
- 11/15/98 Proposed Tobacco Settlement Criticized by Health Organizations Bloomberg News
- ``I can't say I
feel strongly one way or the other about it,'' Kessler said. ``It's all about money, and there's almost nothing in it for public health.''
- 11/19/98 MI, MO, TN, NH:
Four More States Back Tobacco Deal AP
- MICHIGAN, MISSOURI, TENNESSEE And NEW HAMPSHIRE are
the latest to sign on and no state so far has said it rejects the deal.
- 11/19/98 NH, AL: NEW HAMPSHIRE, ALA. back tobacco deal Sun-Sentinel
- NEW HAMPSHIRE today
became the 19th state to endorse a $206 billion deal with tobacco companies that would resolve state claims for the costs of health care for
sick smokers. . . That includes ALABAMA, whose attorney general disclosed late Wednesday that he had signed the deal on Tuesday despite
objections from the governor.
- 11/19/98 Proposed Tobacco Settlement Labeled Too Soft on Industry The Washington Post
- Critics
found what they called loopholes and unexpected industry benefits in the complex agreement, which would shut down the biggest legal threat
the industry has ever faced. . . Chief among the industry's boons, some critics said, is a provision that would grant the industry credit on the
money it pays states, if Congress in the next four years passes a cigarette tax and sends some of it to states for tobacco control or certain other
uses. If Congress, for instance, passed a cigarette tax, then sent the money to states for children's health care, the industry could subtract those
taxes from its payments to the states.
- 11/19/98 17 States Plan
To Sign Tobacco Deal AP
- OHIO, HAWAII and IDAHO came out Wednesday in favor of the deal even as 10
to 15 other attorneys general were said to be discussing aspects of the deal in a private conference call. . . CONNECTICUT Attorney General
Richard BLUMENTHAL said it was the second conference call in as many days for attorneys general who are trying to analyze some of
the more complex provisions of the massive proposal.
- 11/19/98 VT: Lung Association Opposes Settlement Reuters
- The Vermont Lung Association is opposing
the latest proposed settlement with big tobacco. It's calling on State Attorney General William Sorrell to reject the offer and pursue the state's
own lawsuit.
- 11/19/98 MA: Tobacco foes cite US claim in suit / HARSHBARGER said to favor settlement The Boston Globe
- With much of the focus on the $4 billion that Massachusetts could receive by joining the national tobacco settlement, some antismoking
advocates who oppose the deal have raised an issue few have considered: The federal government has a 50 percent claim on those funds.
- 11/19/98 MD: Md. Debates Accepting Settlement On Tobacco, Pursuing Court Case The Washington Post
- But CURRAN's lobbying success has left him with a tough choice: Does he accept the $4.2 billion offered this week as part of a
national settlement with the tobacco industry, or does he decide the state's case is so strong that Maryland is better off going to trial to try to
get more money?
- 11/19/98 MD: Tobacco settlement is called misleading The Baltimore Sun
- SMOKE FREE MARYLAND, a
coalition of 65 organizations that includes all the state's major health advocacy groups, wrote Gov. Parris N. GLENDENING and Attorney
General J. Joseph CURRAN Jr. yesterday urging them not to sign the deal. "We think we can get a better deal by taking Maryland's case to
court," said Dr. Albert L. BLUMBERG, president of Smoke Free Maryland. Moreover, he said, accepting the settlement could weaken political
support for potentially more effective measures against teen smoking
- 11/19/98 OH: Ohio
joins tobacco deal Cincinnati Enquirer
- Flanked by representatives from health groups, Attorney General Betty
MONTGOMERY said Wednesday that Ohio would net more from the deal than it possibly could have gained by pursuing a lawsuit against
Big Tobacco. "There's no way we could have gotten the restrictions on advertising and marketing on our own," she said. "Every day we delay,
we have more children smoking and kids who are more likely to die."
- 11/19/98 NC: Tobacco
talks go to governors Raleigh News & Observer
- The next round of negotiations on North Carolina's landmark tobacco
settlement will take place in the governor's office. So says Phil Carlton, an old friend of Gov. Jim Hunt's and the cigarette industry's point man in
negotiations that culminated in the historic $206 billion legal settlement unveiled Monday. . ."This second part of the agreement is really about
economic development in tobacco states, not a straight legal settlement for all the states," Carlton said. "That makes it appropriate to negotiate this
part of the settlement with the governors rather than AGs."
- 11/19/98 NC: Minorities Want Voice In Settlement / Smokeout Set For Today Reuters
- The state
Minority Health Advisory Council wants to make sure there's input from the minority community in how money from a tobacco settlement is
distributed. . . Even in tobacco-rich North Carolina, smokers are being encouraged to take part in today's ``Great American Smokeout''
- 11/19/98 WV: Tobacco Settlement Deadline Nears Reuters
- Officials say the offer would give the state
68-Million dollars annually until the year 2025... and then 70-Million dollars annually forever. Officials say they're consulting with state
agencies on whether to accept the settlement.
- 11/19/98KY: Patton Calls For Farmer Protection / &W Reacts To Proposal Reuters
- A spokesman for
Louisville-based tobacco giant Brown and Williamson says Governor Paul Patton's proposed two-BILLION-dollar compensation to tobacco
farmers is premature.
- 11/19/98 KY: Ky.
attorney general leaning toward pact Cincinnati Enquirer
- Attorney General Ben CHANDLER said the only
alternative for Kentucky to get something from the manufacturers would be to file its own lawsuit, and he would not be confident the state
could win.
- 11/19/98 KY: State leaders push tobacco companies Lexington Herald-Leader
- Kentucky appears
likely to join a $206 billion national tobacco settlement, but top political leaders yesterday still were pressing tobacco companies to put a
price tag on their pledge to help leaf growers make up lost income. Gov. Paul PATTON said cigarette makers should put up an extra $2.2
billion to compensate
- 11/19/98 WI: While making deal, PHILIP MORRIS officials gave to THOMPSON Milwaukee (WI) Journal Sentinel
- As their lawyers were hammering out a multibillion-dollar settlement with the states, Philip Morris executives and their subsidiaries did their best to clog Gov. Tommy G. Thompson's campaign coffers with cash. Since Aug. 1, Thompson received 55 campaign donations totaling $20,100 from high-ranking officials at Philip Morris and its Wisconsin operations. Those include MILLER BREWING, OSCAR MAYER, TOMBSTONE PIZZA and KRAFT FOODS.
- 11/19/98 MO: State faces deadline for decision on tobacco settlement St. Louis Post-Dispatch
- ``I think
that people recognize the risk of continued litigation,'' NIXON said Wednesday. ``This offer is a serious and significant offer that could
relatively quickly provide resources and relief that would make a real difference.''
- 11/19/98 KS: State Might Get $1.5 Billion Wichita Eagle
- Attorney General Carla STOVALL on Wednesday
said Kansas could receive $1.5 billion in the proposed tobacco settlement, a figure that immediately prompted talk about how the money
might be spent. As Stovall briefed lawmakers on the landmark proposal between cigarette makers and 46 states, public health advocates said
they were preparing for a legislative fight over the money.
- 11/19/98
OK: Tobacco Money May Help Pensions, Health Care The Oklahoman
- A bill filed Wednesday by two state
lawmakers earmarks the $2 billion in tobacco money Oklahoma will receive for health care programs and for shoring up the state teachers'
pension system. "Since this settlement would be a one-time windfall, this money should be invested for the benefit of all Oklahomans,
especially children," said state Rep. Jari ASKINS, D-Duncan, author of House Bill 1002.
- 11/19/98
OK: Tobacco Case Lawyers Expected to Pare Fees The Oklahoman
- Six law firms that represented Oklahoma in its
lawsuit against the tobacco industry could receive a contingency fee projected at $300 million, but they'll likely settle for far less, Attorney
General Drew Edmondson said Wednesday. "I think the actual payments, while they will be significant, are going to be far less than what they
contracted for," he said.
- 11/19/98 CA: Health Groups Decry Tobacco Settlement Los Angeles Times
- Every major
public health organization in California decried the proposed $206-billion national tobacco settlement Wednesday and urged Atty. Gen.-elect
Bill LOCKYER and other government officials to take whatever steps necessary to prevent the deal from taking effect.
- 11/18/98 Gary Black: Return
of the Oligopoly: Earnings Management Anyone? Raising MO Price Target. Outperforms. Tobacco BBS
- We
expect all AGs to embrace the new settlement by Fridays deadline. As litigation uncertainty is transformed from a long-tailed liability
to an expense that can be priced, investors are likely to reduce litigation discounts further, and shift their focus to buybacks, spinoffs, and the
resumption of oligopolistic pricing behavior. We have raised our MO price target to $65-$70 . . The favorable renegade terms by which
non-signatories can join this deal -- no payments unless market share exceeds 125% of 1997 share -- will likely bring in all renegades except
Liggett.
- 11/18/98 Where States Stand On Tobacco
Deal MSNBC
- The states that earlier signed on are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Iowa, New
York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Utah and Washington. Many of the remaining state attorneys general were
meeting this week with elected officials and public health activists to discuss the proposal.
- 11/18/98 Tobacco Agreement Supported by Almost Half of Remaining States Bloomberg News
- States
including OHIO, WISCONSIN, NEBRASKA and IDAHO today backed the agreement, bringing the tally to 22 of the 46 states that haven't
already settled . . . If an unspecified target number of states join by Friday's deadline, the companies will sign the settlement by
Monday.
- 11/18/98 16 States Will
Sign Tobacco Deal AP
- OHIO and IDAHO joined 14 other states that say they will sign the $206 billion tobacco
settlement while attorneys general who have yet to decide conferred by telephone Wednesday about the massive proposal.
- 11/18/98 Tobacco Deal Ignores Global Problems, Critics Say ($) NewsEdge
- "There is not a
single international tobacco-control measure in this deal, " says Robert Weissman, co-director of Essential Action, a Washington-based
group which opposes the big tobacco firms. "The attorneys-general who are backing this are making a mistake." "It is irresponsible of the
attorneys-general to let big tobacco (firms) off the hook," adds Karen Licavoli, associate executive director of the American Lung Association
of San Francisco. "Any settlement must protect public health both in the United States and abroad."
- 11/18/98 Did tobacco foes forget the
Net? MSNBC
- Tobacco critics say the group just didn¹t have the leverage against the tobacco industry to include
the Internet this time around. . . As yet, the tobacco industry¹s appearances on the Web have been rare. There has been no tobacco brand
advertising online, and there¹s no marlboro.com, camel.com or winston.com site, for example. . . "The way the tobacco companies see it, the
Internet is accessed via phone lines and the [Federal Communications Commission] has jurisdiction over phone lines," one agency source
says.
- 11/18/98 PROFILE: CHRISTINE GREGOIRE: Lawyer Tenacious in Tobacco Talks AP
- When
Mississippi settled its lawsuit against Big Tobacco last year, Christine Gregoire was left as the chief negotiator across the table from a
powerful special interest. . . Before she helped cobble together what would be the biggest civil settlement in U.S. history, Mrs. Gregoire had
teamed up with Mississippi Attorney General Mike Moore to broker the landmark 1997 tobacco deal that later faltered in Congress.
- 11/18/98
APHA Raises Concerns About Tobacco Settlement U.S. Newswire
- APHA believes that any acceptable state
tobacco settlement must include the following elements and that negotiations must be reopened to include: -- Adequate comment and input
from the public health community and from the public at large;
- 11/16/98
NADER Criticizes 'Sweetheart Deal' for Big Tobacco U.S. Newswire
- What possible justification is there for
ramming this deal through? Is the industry trying to circumvent newly elected, tougher-on-tobacco attorneys general in California, New York
and elsewhere? The deal would let the industry get off cheap, enable the companies to keep secret many of their most incriminating
documents, interfere with local enforcement actions and suits against Big Tobacco, and tie the hands of future attorneys general in addressing
future misconduct by the industry. It contains worrisome provisions that will enable Big Tobacco to shield its food and beverage divisions
from payment obligations.
- 11/16/98
ENACT Statement on State AGs, Tobacco Industry Settlement U.S. Newswire
- 1. This legal settlement between
states and tobacco companies is in no way a substitute for a national tobacco control policy. -- There are critical areas the settlement does not
cover at all, including FDA regulation of tobacco products, restrictions on youth access to tobacco, protections against environmental
(secondhand) tobacco smoke, stronger health warnings, penalties if youth smoking rates don't decline, and assistance for tobacco farmers. . .
2. It is our understanding that the settlement does not require that the states spend any of the funds they receive on tobacco control
efforts.
- 11/16/98
Statement by AAP President on State Attorneys General Settlement U.S. Newswire
- First, the American people, the
tobacco industry, Congress and the Clinton administration must understand that this settlement is a step in an ongoing process. . . Second,
the American Academy of Pediatrics is urging governors and state legislators who accept the settlement to commit the funds to tobacco
control programs.
- 11/18/98 ID: Idaho attorney general
signs tobacco deal Reuters
- Idaho Attorney General Al Lance said the state stood to receive $711 million by the
year 2025 under the terms of the settlement, which he signed at a news conference.
- 11/18/98 AL: James Asks For 30 Day Tobacco Delay Reuters
- Governor Fob JAMES has asked
Attorney General Bill PRYOR for a 30 day delay in the tobacco settlement process . . . Meanwhile, Montgomery lawyer Jere BEASLEY is
asking a local circuit court judge to combine Governor James' tobacco lawsuit with one filed by Attorney General Bill Pryor.
- 11/18/98 KY: Patton, Lawmakers Meet On Tobacco Reuters
- Tobacco takes center state at meetings
today between Governor Paul Patton and Kentucky lawmakers
- 11/18/98 CO: Health groups,
legislators huddle on tobacco money Rocky Mountain News
- Attorney General Gale Norton came home Tuesday
with what she described as a victory for Coloradans that will put $100 million a year from tobacco sales into state health programs. Exactly
where that money will go is still undecided. Representatives of the American Cancer Society, the Coalition for the Medically Under Served
and the American Heart and Lung associations met with members of the Joint Budget Committee late Tuesday to talk about that.
- 11/18/98 CA: AMERICAN
CANCER SOCIETY States Attorneys General Tobacco Settlement Is Wrong For California PR Newswire
- It appears
the settlement does not adequately hold the tobacco industry accountable for the death, disease, and suffering caused by their tobacco
products. The loopholes in the advertising and marketing provisions serve to render them virtually ineffective. The agreement is further
compromised by its inability to control tobacco industry compliance. This settlement will allow the tobacco companies to operate as they
have in the past.
- 11/18/98 LA: State Already Spending Tobacco Money Reuters
- State lawmakers are already talking
about dividing up the spoils of the more than four-BILLION dollars Louisiana will receive from the nationwide settlement with tobacco
companies.
- 11/18/98 ID: Lance Says Tobacco Deal Pays Big Reuters
- Idaho Attorney General Alan Lance
says the state will probably get more money from the tobacco settlement than it would from a jury. Lance told the legislature's budget-writing
committee that 712-Million dollars over the next 25 years is better than most Idaho juries would be willing to give.
- 11/18/98 NY: 24B Cig WindfallSets Off Skirmish New York Daily News
- A tug-of-war has begun over
how to spend the $24 billion earmarked for New York as part of a proposed settlement with the nation's cigarette makers. In Albany,
legislative leaders began floating ideas yesterday on how to spend the extra cash, suggesting needs ranging from tax cuts to school fixups.
But Mayor Giuliani urged caution and questioned whether the out-of-court settlement hammered out by New York Attorney General Dennis
Vacco and prosecutors from seven other states goes far enough.
- 11/18/98 VA: Tobacco Farmers See Future As Cloudy The Washington Post
- Industry analysts
predict the deal would bring steep rises in the price of cigarettes and a growing reliance on cheaper foreign tobacco. Both would be bad
news for Virginia's 10,000 tobacco farmers.
- 11/18/98 KY: Senators think state will take tobacco offer Lexington Herald-Leader
- As Kentucky
officials debated whether to join other states in a settlement, most legislators -- as well as Attorney General Ben Chandler and Gov. Paul
Patton -- were staying tight-lipped about what might happen. But two Senate leaders -- Sens. Walter BLEVINS and Joey PENDLETON --
said yesterday they think CHANDLER is leaning toward a settlement. Both Blevins and Pendleton attended a more than two-hour briefing
Monday night with Chandler, Patton and other lawmakers.
- 11/18/98 WI:
Wisconsin joins tobacco settlement Pioneer Press
- Wisconsin is likely to get up to $5.9 billion over 25 years with
payments starting in 2000. "Joe Camel is gone and any future Joe Camel is gone,'' Attorney General James Doyle said, referring to the
cartoon character formerly used in Camel cigarette ads.
- 11/18/98 WI: With PM-WI--Tobacco Settlement Minneapolis Star Tribune
- Highlights of
Wisconsin' s lawsuit against tobacco companies: February 1997: Wisconsin files lawsuit against tobacco industry.
- 11/17/98 CA: Proposal draws yeas, nays here / Some say teens to still get cigarettes San Diego
Union-Tribune
- People interviewed yesterday generally favor making Big Tobacco pay $206 billion to curb advertising and
marketing and fund a $1.5 billion anti-smoking campaign, but remain skeptical about where the final dollars will flow.
- 11/18/98 BUYER
BEWARE -- AGAIN: Professor Robert Dolan, Harvard Business School, Releases an Opinion Piece Regarding The Most Recent
Agreement Between The States And The Four Major Tobacco Companies PR Newswire
- In preparing to testify as
an expert witness on marketing practices for the state of Minnesota in that state's trial against Big Tobacco last spring, I reviewed more than
5,000 internal company documents. That exercise made crystal clear the disingenuousness of their claim that their marketing objective was
simply to switch current adult smokers from one brand to another, but not try to persuade teenagers to begin smoking or to keep other
people hooked on the habit. Nonsense.. . New weapons will be needed
for the companies' arsenals as well. If history is a guide, they will be found and implemented. Indeed, since the settlement provides no
penalty for the levels of youth smoking, the incentives are in place for pursuing this part of the market.
- 11/18/98 Despite
deal, tobacco will still fuel NASCAR Raleigh News & Observer
- "The definition in the master agreement, the
definition of brand-name sponsorship, would allow the sponsorship of one event, which could be a series like Winston Cup racing," said
Andy Vanore, general counsel to the state attorney general.
- 11/18/98 Fitch IBCA Comments On Tobacco Industry $206B Attorney Generals Settlement - Fitch IBCA
PR Newswire
- Fitch IBCA expects to meet with the management teams of the tobacco companies to discuss the
credit implications of the settlement as well as any changes in financial policy and strategic initiatives that may follow. A comprehensive
settlement agreement with the AGs, will remove many obstacles that have prevented these changes in the past. Fitch IBCA believes that a
rating action prior to those discussions as well as final approval of the document would be premature.
- 11/18/98
REYNOLDS on track to back NASCAR / Tobacco proposal protects sponsorship Richmond Times-Dispatch
- The agreement, in essence, makes no changes to Winston Cup racing and may not affect other R.J. Reynolds involvement in NASCAR
such as sanctioned events at Southside Speedway. If R.J. Reynolds goes with NASCAR, other sports sponsorships would probably be
dropped
- 11/17/98 Tobacco deal:
What next? CNN
- In this story: Highlights of proposed tobacco deal Clinton urges national tobacco legislation
Not the end of lawsuits Related stories and sites
- 11/18/98 What The Proposed Tobacco Deal Will And Won't Do CNN
- 11/17/98
GRAPHIC: Map of participating states CNN
- 11/17/98 State AGs Weigh
Tobacco Deal AP
- Cigarette makers haven't said how many states must sign on for the industry to proceed with the
deal that was announced Monday, and there may be no magic number. It could be a judgment call on what states choose to fight the industry
in court. The two biggest, California and New York, are on board
- 11/17/98 NEWS ANALYSIS Accord Ends Key Phase in Ongoing Tobacco War Los Angeles Times
- The record $206-billion legal settlement announced Monday between the nation's major cigarette makers and state attorneys general
has ended the most pivotal phase of a grueling legal war of attrition that began in 1994 with state lawsuits seeking recovery of tax money
spent treating sick smokers. If approved by the states, as expected, the 131-page agreement will eliminate the single greatest legal threat
facing the $50-billion-a-year industry. However, the industry still faces hundreds of lawsuits filed by well-financed plaintiffs' attorneys in
courts around the country, and its legal problems are by no means over. . . The union health-care cases are "the next big front," said Patrick
J. Coughlin, a San Diego attorney who represents the plaintiffs in most of these cases.
- 11/17/98 CLINTON applauds, critics pan proposal Winston-Salem Journal
- Clinton hailed the settlement as an
''important step in the right direction'' and called on Congress to pass legislation next year to protect tobacco farmers and to clarify the
jurisdiction of the federal Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco. Anti-smoking advocates said that the deal isn't strong enough.
The American Lung Association called on states to reject it.
- 11/17/98 More States, White House Endorse Tobacco Deal The Washington Post
- A $206 billion proposed
tobacco settlement picked up crucial support yesterday from several state attorneys general and from the White House . . .Many of the
largest health groups expressed concern that the industry was getting too much in return for its multibillion-dollar payout over the next 25
years. A smaller but politically potent coalition went further, urging states to reject the deal. The reaction came as details of the complex,
146-page agreement . . . became public.
- 11/17/98 States are urged to
join tobacco litigation Pioneer Press
- Public health advocates generally stopped short of saying whether states
should join the settlement, saying they still were reading the fine print. But they blasted the short deadline that state officials have to decide
whether to join. And some noted there are no guarantees that the states will spend the money on tobacco-control efforts.
- 11/17/98Is Tobacco
Settlement Good News for Firms? The Wall Street Journal (pay registration)
- The tobacco industry's newest settlement with a big
group of states is emerging as a far better deal for cigarette makers than widely expected, and could mark a turning point in their long fight
against the legal assault on smoking. . . Missing from the settlement were many of the onerous cigarette-marketing restrictions contained in
the historic settlement proposal the industry signed in June 1997.
- 11/17/98 In a Second Effort, States Unveil a Proposed Tobacco Settlement New York Times
- Still, it
appears that the new plan will succeed where the earlier one failed. So far, more than a dozen states have publicly announced their support for
the proposal and most others are expected to sign on by Friday, when officials must indicate whether they will participate in the proposal or
continue with lawsuits against the industry. Christine Gregoire, the Washington state attorney general and a lead negotiator of the new plan,
said she believed that the time had come to "stop the legal bickering and move the tobacco fight out of the courtroom and into the
streets."
- 11/17/98 States Fuming Over
Feds' Smoke $Ignals New York Post
- Even as Clinton praised the pact, his spokesman told reporters, "The federal
government is under some obligation to claim some of this money" as reimbursement for its share of smoking-related Medicaid costs. In
Medicaid fraud awards, for example, Uncle Sam gets 50 percent of any payout. "We look forward to working with the states to figure out the
best way to do that or ... to make sure the money is used for children and the reduction of teen smoking," the spokesman, Joe Lockhart, told
reporters. That got Albany fuming. "We don't believe the feds have a claim to the money and ... we think we'll prevail," said Vacco
spokesman Chris McKenna.
- 11/17/98 A New Call for National Tobacco Laws, Prompted by States' Deal, Faces Hurdles The Wall Street Journal
- If new legislation is
drafted, the tobacco industry is determined to oppose any bill that isn't crafted to its specifications. With its deep pockets, it could easily
repeat the $40 million-plus national advertising campaign that crushed tobacco legislation earlier this year. . . There are some new ideas
blooming in the Senate, including a plan under consideration by Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch of Utah to provide financial
incentives to tobacco companies to make less harmful
cigarettes and give the FDA more regulatory power
- 11/17/98 Billion dollar tobacco deal BBC Online
- And some anti-smoking campaigners are also unhappy that
the agreement does not go far enough. Paul Billings of the American Lung Association: It's not just a question of money"It allows the
tobacco companies to continue to market their products to children the way they always have," said Paul Billings of the American Lung
Association. "They have agreed not to primarily target kids, but if the advertisement is geared to an adult and just happens to target kids then
it appears to be allowed to go forward."
- 11/17/98 Tobacco
pact set, but demands linger Raleigh News & Observer
- The agreement would bring a financial windfall for states
that join it, with $4.6 billion earmarked for North Carolina over 25 years.
- 11/17/98 Big Payday In Tobacco Settlement Newsday
- Estimates for legal fees on the tobacco
agreement with states start at about $10 billion and go as high as $13.5 billion, analysts say, making this deal one of the biggest payouts
ever for attorneys negotiating a civil settlement.. . Overall, the companies are budgeting up to $500 million per year to cover the lawyer
fees. That means if the amount does turn out to be 5 percent of the total, it would take 20 years to pay the lawyers. In addition to RICE's
firm and SCRUGGS, more than 125 law firms are involved, Rice said, including HAGENS & BERMAN of Seattle, Wash., which
represents several states.
- 11/17/98 Critics: Sweetheart
Deal For Tobacco Cincinnati Post
- ''The deal would leave the Marlboro Man in the saddle and the tobacco companies
in the driver's seat,'' said Jeffrey Barg, president of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Pennsylvania. Consumer advocate Ralph Nader urged
states to reject what he termed a ''sweetheart deal'' that ''would let the industry get off cheap, enable the companies to keep secret many of the
incriminating documents, interfere with local enforcement actions and suits against Big Tobacco and tie the hands of future attorneys
general.''
- 11/17/98 US anti-smoking groups
want to delay settlement Business Day
- US antismoking groups prepared yesterday to unleash a campaign to halt
a proposed $206bn settlement struck by tobacco companies, accusing its architects of trying to rush it through without public
scrutiny.
- 11/17/98 INFACT Urges State Attorneys General to Reject Big Tobacco's Raw Deal PR
Newswire
- As the tobacco industry fights for the proposed state settlement, it blocks real progress on the federal level. Philip
Morris was the largest soft-money donor in 1997-98 and a key force behind the $50 million public relations campaign that defeated
tobacco control legislation last session. . . The tobacco industry's firm grip on established avenues of reform has provoked figures with
the stature of former US Surgeon General C. Everett Koop to endorse INFACT's Tobacco Industry Campaign and Boycott. "Until the
industry ceases its aggressive marketing practices and interference in our democracy," says Dr. Koop, "consumers should apply
economic pressure on Big Tobacco by refusing to purchase Philip Morris' Kraft and RJR's Nabisco food products."
- 11/17/98 For Leaf
Firms, Breathing Room -- And Some 'Residual Risks' Richmond Times-Dispatch
- Yesterday's proposed tobacco
settlement gives Philip Morris USA and other major cigarette-makers some breathing room, but it doesn't snuff out their legal troubles. . . "There are still residual risks," said Gary Black
- 11/17/98 REAL AUDIO:
Seeking Tobacco Deal OK National Public Radio
- For the details, listen as NPR's Debbie ELLIOT speaks with
Morning Edition host Bob EDWARDS.
- 11/17/98 Tobacco Deal
Miami Herald
- Here are highlights of the agreement between state attorneys general and major tobacco companies announced
Monday.
- 11/17/98 Q&A: Public health
groups laud tobacco settlement Detroit News
- Q: What does the public health community think about this deal? A:
Public health groups are calling it a first step toward a national tobacco control policy at best.
- 11/17/98 PROFILE: JAMES E. TIERNEY: Fighting Smoke With Fire The Washington Post
- For James E.
Tierney, self-appointed field general in America's tobacco wars, yesterday was a moment of victory. . . Tierney, 51, a former Maine attorney
general, gets an evangelical tone as he proclaims that whatever happens in Congress or in state litigation, "one thing that does not change
from place to place is what the tobacco industry did": the industry's attempts to conceal the health consequences of smoking, and the alleged
efforts to recruit new generations of smokers to replace dying customers. "The public will rise up again," Tierney predicts. If that happens,
no small amount of the credit will go to Tierney . . . In the ongoing tobacco wars, Tierney, these days a consultant hired by state attorneys
general, is part strategist, traffic cop, lawyer and spin doctor.
- 11/17/98Tobacco
Industry Dumps Cartoons But Holds On to Jazz Festivals The Wall Street Journal
- But don't expect tobacco ads to
disappear. Magazine advertising isn't targeted in the agreement. Neither is direct marketing. And each of the four largest tobacco companies
involved in the settlement can continue to sponsor one major event each year.
- 11/17/98 To
the Sidelines? Proposal means sporting events could face loss of sponsorship Winston-Salem Journal
- ''THE
MORE advertising restrictions that are imposed, the tougher it becomes to win new ground,'' said Martin Feldman, an analyst with Salomon
Smith Barney in New York. ''Every time a method of advertising is lost, it makes it harder to differentiate the product with the public.'' The ad
restrictions also raise questions for the sporting events that have long relied on Reynolds for sponsorship.
- 11/17/98 WINSTON CUP looks safe under proposed deal AP
- R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. would
be allowed to continue its title sponsorship of NASCAR's premier racing series under the proposed settlement with state attorneys general.
North Carolina Attorney General Mike Easley said Monday he has been working to make sure wording in the proposed settlement is such
that RJR could continue its role as Winston Cup's title sponsor. ``Everybody gets one brand-name sponsorship, so I have been talking with
officials at RJR to make certain they would be able to keep the Winston Cup series,'' Easley said.
- 11/17/98 Impact
Uncertain On Auto Racing Richmond Times-Dispatch
- Officials at NASCAR said yesterday they had not had time to
review and evaluate the tobacco agreement to understand a provision concerning sports sponsorships by tobacco companies.
- 11/17/98 ME, NH:
Tobacco deal dollars detailed Foster's Democrat
- MAINE stands to get $1.44 billion spread over the next 25 years,
and $61.5 million a year forever thereafter, if the state¹s attorney general agrees to sign a proposed settlement of the state¹s lawsuit against
four cigarette makers. Likewise, NEW HAMPSHIRE would get $1.25 billion and $42.6 million respectively, if that state¹s attorney general signs
on. The annual disbursements after 2025 would be pegged to changes in inflation. However, public health advocates in Maine are already
howling in protest against the proposed settlement. In particular, they oppose the immunity granted the tobacco companies against any future
state lawsuits.
- 11/17/98 MA: AG
urged to snub tobacco deal The Boston Herald
- nti-smoking activists yesterday asked Attorney General Scott
HARSHBARGER to reject the proposed $206 billion settlement with cigarette makers, saying it lets the tobacco companies off easy and may
ultimately encourage smoking. ``The money is spread out over many years,'' said Edward SWEDA, senior attorney for the Tobacco Products
Liability Project. ``There is almost an incestuous arrangement whereby it would be in the state's interest to perpetuate the health of cigarette
sales
- 11/17/98 MA: Clinton endorses $206b tobacco pact The Boston Globe
- In Massachusetts,
Attorney General Scott Harshbarger met with antismoking advocates and came under renewed pressure to reject the deal, which would settle
state claims against tobacco companies for the cost of treating tobacco-related illness. But Harshbarger gave no indication of whether he
would join the settlement or continue with plans to prosecute cigarette makers in state court. . . Yesterday, Harshbarger called public health
and antismoking leaders to his office to brief them on the settlement. The group included state Senators Warrren Tolman of Watertown and
Lois Pines of Newton, both Democrats; former state representative John McDonough, a leading health care advocate; and Richard Daynard,
a Northeastern University law professor; and representatives from the state chapter of the American Cancer Society.
- 11/17/98 NY: NEW YORK CITY mayor
says might reject tobacco pact Reuters
- New York City Mayor Rudolph GIULIANI said Tuesday the city's
approval was needed in the proposed pact between state attorneys general and four tobacco firms, and warned it should not be taken for
granted. ``There are a lot of conceptual questions about how good the deal really is,'' the Republican mayor told City Hall
reporters.
- 11/17/98 NEW YORK CITY may
get big part of NYS tobacco deal Reuters
- Steven Newman, New York City deputy comptroller, said he understood
that the Pataki administration planned to share half of the state's windfall with its localities. ``We would be a significant portion, based on
what percentage of Medicaid they pay,'' he said.
- 11/17/98 NY: Anticipating the Benefits Newsday
- The proposal calls for $24 billion earmarked to the
state through the year 2025. NEW YORK CITY would get the biggest chunk: $6 billion. About $647 million would go to NASSAU COUNTY and
$631.5 million to SUFFOLK over the same period. "It could be better. It could always be better," said Suffolk County Health Commissioner
CLARE BRADLEY. "The problem with holding out is that we risk getting nothing. And the longer we wait the fewer people we can help." A
separate lawsuit filed by the city against the tobacco industry would be settled as part of the deal, according to New York Attorney General
DENNIS VACCO, who added that the city is expected to sign the consent order negotiated by the state attorneys general. But Lorna Goodman, a
spokeswoman for MAYOR RUDOLPH GIULIANI, said the city is waiting to see the final terms of the plan before signing on. "If the benefits turn
out to be as good for the city as they appear to be, we would not challenge it," she said.
- 11/17/98 NY: Tobacco Deal II / States reach pact; Clinton seeks more in Congress Newsday
- Attorney
General Dennis Vacco of New York, one of the negotiators, told reporters that of the $24-billion windfall that would go to New York by
2025 under the deal, Nassau County would get $647 million, Suffolk County $631.5 million and New York City $6 billion.
- 11/17/98 NY: Cig Firms, States in 206B Deal New York Daily News
- The settlement would mean a $24
billion windfall for New York State over the next 25 years. New York City's share of the settlement is estimated at $5.38 billion, officials said
yesterday.
- 11/17/98 NY: New York State Would Receive $25 Billion From Tobacco Deal New York Times
- New York State would get $25 billion over the next 25 years from a proposed settlement of litigation brought by states against the
tobacco industry, Attorney General Dennis C. Vacco said Monday. Of that money, New York City would get more than $6 billion.
- 11/17/98 NY: Spitzer Widens Lead on Vacco in Latest Count New York Times
- Vacco, speaking to
reporters Monday in Washington after a news conference about a multistate settlement with the tobacco industry, said that the figures were
far from complete and that he believed he would ultimately be certified as the victor.
- 11/17/98 MD, DE: In tobacco deal, MARYLAND is leery and DELAWARE is cheery The Baltimore Sun
- Maryland Attorney General Joseph CURRAN says he'll continue to press for a better settlement with the tobacco industry, after
hearing health advocates sharply criticize the proposed deal . . .Meanwhile, Delaware Attorney General Jane BRADY praised the deal,
saying it involves more than just payments to the states. Although she could approve a settlement that would bring her state $775 million,
she is consulting with Gov. Thomas CARPER and legislative leaders before making a decision Thursday or Friday. . .
- 11/17/98 VA:
'An important step' / Deal, hailed by Clinton, could affect thousands of Virginians Richmond Times-Dispatch
- With the $206 billion multistate settlement announced yesterday, the tobacco industry agreed in theory to buy peace on a potentially
costly front -- and made an enticing offer to states such as Virginia that haven't sued. . . If Virginia joins the pact, it could collect $4 billion
from the settlement over 25 years, a revised sum Attorney General Mark L. Earley said was based on a formula for carving up the national
pie.
- 11/17/98 NC:
Phase Two talks may mean more money for N.C. Raleigh News & Observer
- Although it's not a done deal, it's
possible North Carolina could scoop up an extra helping from the historic $206 billion settlement between cigarette makers and state
attorneys general. The state stands to receive $4.6 billion over the next 25 years under the settlement signed Monday afternoon by Attorney
General MIKE EASLEY. But the 250-page agreement also requires cigarette makers to sit down with officials from North Carolina and other
tobacco states within the next 30 days to hash out a separate deal covering tobacco farmers and tobacco allotment holders.
- 11/17/98 NC:
GRAPHIC: Annual payments to North Carolina Raleigh News & Observer
- North Carolina would get a total of
$4.6 billion in the next 25 years. [GRAPH]
- 11/17/98 NC:
N.C. signs tobacco deal Winston-Salem Journal
- N.C. Attorney General MIKE EASLEY signed a landmark
agreement yesterday to place new restrictions on tobacco advertising and bring North Carolina $5 billion over the next 25 years . . . Though
North Carolina never filed its own suit against the industry -- and state law specifically forbids Easley to try to recover the cost of treating
sick smokers as other states have -- Easley was one of eight state attorneys general who entered talks with the industry five months ago after
a broader settlement proposal collapsed in Washington.
- 11/17/98 GA: Georgia to
get $4.6 billion in tobacco settlement Atlanta Journal-Constitution
- Georgia would receive $4.6 billion over 25
years from the proposed national tobacco settlement, ninth largest among the states. But Attorney General Thurbert BAKER said Monday he
won't decide whether to agree to the deal until later this week. "There are some good things in this document, things we would not be able to
recover for or address under our pending litigation. But I want to take in as much comment on it as possible and make some decision by the
end of the week," he said.
- 11/17/98 FL: Tobacco deal would expand
Florida pact--official Reuters
- Deputy Attorney General Richard Doran said the settlement would expand
restrictions on cigarette advertising and product placement in movies already included under Florida's landmark August 1997 deal, which
ended a state lawsuit to recover the Medicaid costs of treating sick smokers. ``This allows Florida to take another positive step toward the
eradication of smoking, particularly the eradication of teen smoking,'' Doran said.
- 11/17/98 AL:
Judge: State's kids could turn corner with tobacco money Birmingham News
- "It's so big, so big, so big," said a
breathless Judge Sue Bell COBB of the Court of Criminal Appeals. Judge Cobb has ardently supported the Children First program, which is
at the head of the line for tobacco money. The first $85 million of any settlement must go to Children First, according to a law passed this
year.
- 11/17/98 AL:
Tobacco pact would bring state $3 billion Mobile Register
- A proposed tobacco settlement that would bring
Alabama about $3 billion over 25 years got speedy blessings Monday from Gov.-elect Don SIEGELMAN and Attorney General Bill
PRYOR, but anti-smoking groups and a spokesman for outgoing Gov. Fob JAMES said more time was needed to review it.
- 11/17/98 KY: Kentucky officials, smoking foes wary The Courier-Journal
- State officials and members
of anti-smoking groups yesterday were wary of the proposed settlement between states and the tobacco industry. . . "As I understand the
settlement, they expect us to sign by Friday," PATTON said yesterday. "That's an awfully short fuse. . . . I've told them it would be very
difficult for me to sign until I learn more about the tobacco-farmer part."
- 11/17/98KY: Backers sought for tobacco accord Lexington Herald-Leader
- For Kentucky, the deal
would mean $3.4 billion by the year 2025. Most of that money would go to cover Medicaid spending, but the state would have to decide how
to spend about $992 million. Attorney General BEN CHANDLER and Gov. PAUL PATTON didn't return calls late yesterday. There is not specific
money for tobacco farmers
- 11/17/98 KY, IN: States must decide soon on tobacco The Courier-Journal
- Kentucky would receive
about $3.5 billion over the first 25 years and Indiana would receive nearly $4 billion under the proposed settlement announced yesterday in
Washington. Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton said he was concerned about how Kentucky's nearly 60,000 tobacco farms would fare under the
deal
- 11/17/98
- 11/19/98 WI: While making deal, PHILIP MORRIS officials gave to THOMPSON Milwaukee (WI) Journal Sentinel