Iowa has received this year’s payment of $52.9 million from a 1998 landmark tobacco settlement. With this payment, Iowa has received more than $1.36 billion over the past 23 years, and these will continue in perpetuity, based on the number of cigarettes sold in the U.S. “This settlement is nearly a quarter-century old, but our office must diligently monitor and enforce the agreement’s provisions each year so Iowa gets its fair share of the settlement,” says Iowa Attorney General, Tom Miller. Twenty-two percent, or about $11.6 million, will go to the state. The remaining 78 percent will be used principally to pay bondholders who bought bonds issued by the Tobacco Settlement Authority. State Treasurer, Michael Fitzgerald, has announced that Iowa refunded its tobacco settlement bonds this month, resulting in more than $167 million in savings for the state over the life of the bonds. The 2021 payment came from 29 companies, including Philip Morris USA, R.J. Reynolds, Santa Fe Natural Tobacco, Vector and Commonwealth Brands.
