Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear said the commonwealth received more than $102 million in tobacco settlement money this week. The 1998 landmark Master Settlement Agreement requires tobacco companies compensate states for some of the medical costs associated with tobacco-related illnesses and restrict the advertising and promotion of cigarettes.
Beshear said the MSA agreement has made a positive impact on the Commonwealth, with more than $2 billion collected by the state so far.
Beshear’s office monitors and enforces the terms of the agreement in cooperation with other agencies including the Office of State Budget Director. The General Assembly has designated half of the MSA funds to be invested in agricultural diversification through grants issued by the Governor’s Office of Agriculture Policy.
The Tobacco Settlement Agreement Fund Oversight Committee oversees the determinations on grant applications from the agricultural fund. Kentucky’s additional MSA revenues are used to help improve the health outcomes of Kentucky children and families.
The three largest cigarette manufacturers – Philip Morris USA, RJ Reynolds and Lorillard (the latter two now merged as Reynolds American) – pay most of the MSA payment.
