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February 3, 2000 YAROSLAVSKY, LOCKYER ANNOUNCE INITIAL PAYMENT OF TOBACCO SETTLEMENT TO LOS ANGELES COUNTY Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky and State Attorney General Bill Lockyer today announced that Los Angeles County has received its first payment of approximately $79.3 million from the State of California under the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, which sharply restricts tobacco marketing and bars advertising aimed at kids. "We're very pleased to have this money in hand, and we thank the State for all their assistance in bringing our case to such a successful conclusion," Yaroslavsky said. "When we first filed suit against Big Tobacco in August 1996, skeptics dismissed it as a long shot. Today, I'm delighted to announce that our "long shot" is paying off big-time, and will keep paying off." Said Attorney General Bill Lockyer, "These funds and the historic settlement agreement hold the tobacco industry accountable for decades of deceitful and illegal marketing of their products." He added, "The County of Los Angeles was one of the first in the country to sue the tobacco industry, and I am pleased to present the County with its share of the settlement money." Yaroslavsky noted that the agreement will return to California about $1 billion annually to be split with local governments, with Los Angeles County's share running approximately 26% of that, or $125 million a year. In voting to approve the settlement on December 1, 1998, the Board unanimously adopted Yaroslavsky’s motion to establish a general fund "Tobacco Settlement Account" for the Department of Health Services to receive the funds, with allocations subject to Board approval but earmarked exclusively for health programs and services.
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