FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Office of the Governor  
December 27, 2001  
CONTACT: Terri Giltner (502) 564-2611 or cell phone (502) 330- 6067  
Jessica Loving (502) 585-3919

Kentucky Tobacco Settlement Trust Corporation Announces Distribution of Compensation Checks

FRANKFORT, KY (December 27, 2001) –- Kentucky Governor Paul E. Patton announced today the distribution of payment checks compensating tobacco growers and quota owners in Kentucky as a result of the national legal settlements with tobacco companies. Compensation checks totaling $109 million from the settlement are being distributed this week to 149,000 Kentucky tobacco growers and quota owners.

The compensation comes from the 1999 Phase II settlement between tobacco-growing states and the four largest cigarette manufacturers to offset income losses farmers are expected to experience as a result of changes within the tobacco industry. The agreement provides Kentucky farmers $1.5 billion for annual payments through the year 2010. To date, the Kentucky Tobacco Settlement Trust Corporation has facilitated payments of more than $225 million since the establishment of the Trust in 1999.

The Phase I settlement, established in 1998 as a result of the landmark $206 billion legal agreement made between major cigarette manufactures and 46 state attorneys general compensates state governments for expenses incurred in the treatment of tobacco-related illness. Funds from the Phase I settlement also benefit early childhood development and smoking cessation programs in Kentucky.

Gov. Paul E Patton negotiated favorable terms for distribution of the $5.15 billion National Tobacco Growers Settlement Trust Fund. States’ shares are determined by relative share of the total 1998 basic quota for flue-cured and burley tobacco. This formula ensured Kentucky received 30 percent of the funds – the second largest state share.

“One of the most important aspects of my job is protecting the interests of tobacco farmers and other agricultural producers in Kentucky,” said Patton. “I was pleased to be part of the negotiation process on behalf of our state’s farmers.”

The Kentucky Tobacco Settlement Trust Corporation was established in 1999 to manage fund distribution, and maintains the lowest administrative costs of all major tobacco states.

Digital photographs of the press conference can be found on Governor Patton’s web site at http://gov.state.ky.us/govphotos/photogal.htm.

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