Iowa will receive more than $171 million in additional payments from tobacco manufacturers under a new agreement announced Tuesday by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird that resolves an 18-year legal dispute.
Bird announced Iowa is set to receive an additional $136 million in April 2024, with the rest disbursed annually from 2025 to 2029.
Under Iowa law, 78 percent of the payments will pay down the State’s debt to bondholders and the remainder will be deposited in the State Treasury's Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund.
“It was time to stop wasting public resources on a never-ending fight that only benefits the lawyers,” Bird said. “This is a good deal for Iowa taxpayers, getting us the $136 million we are owed now instead of staying tied up in litigation for decades.”
The settlement resolves a long-standing dispute between the state and tobacco companies over annual payments owed under a 1998 agreement among 46 states and four major tobacco industry manufacturers.
Iowa was one of nine states that was still litigating its dispute in slow-moving arbitration over the payments, which had been unresolved for more than 18 years.
With the settlement, Iowa joins 37 other states that have already resolved similar disputes.
www.thegazette.com
Bird announced Iowa is set to receive an additional $136 million in April 2024, with the rest disbursed annually from 2025 to 2029.
Under Iowa law, 78 percent of the payments will pay down the State’s debt to bondholders and the remainder will be deposited in the State Treasury's Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund.
“It was time to stop wasting public resources on a never-ending fight that only benefits the lawyers,” Bird said. “This is a good deal for Iowa taxpayers, getting us the $136 million we are owed now instead of staying tied up in litigation for decades.”
The settlement resolves a long-standing dispute between the state and tobacco companies over annual payments owed under a 1998 agreement among 46 states and four major tobacco industry manufacturers.
Iowa was one of nine states that was still litigating its dispute in slow-moving arbitration over the payments, which had been unresolved for more than 18 years.
With the settlement, Iowa joins 37 other states that have already resolved similar disputes.
Iowa reaches $171 million settlement with tobacco companies in long-standing dispute
The additional payments will be used to pay down state debt to bondholders.
www.thegazette.com
