Tobacco.org

First check expected mid-1999 

Last month's national tobacco settlement ultimately promises to pump $85 million a year into programs for Alabama children ranging from alternative schools to kiddie-porn investigations.

But in Mobile and Baldwin counties, officials aren't yet sure what to expect or when they might see the money.

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Tobacco settlement gives Legislature its favorite fix 

Provided all goes as planned, Louisiana will come into $4.4 billion over the next 25 years . . .

The cash to the state is just that: unrestricted money that will be deposited into the general fund, where the cash can be appropriated for anything -- wisely or not.

Attorney General Richard Ieyoub, the chief legal officer in a state where high rates of smoking and cancer run hand-in-hand, said last week that it's important that the money be earmarked for medical research, education and other areas to fight tobacco-related illnesses.

Ieyoub was the first to admit that there's no guarantee what will happen with the money once the Legislature gets its hands on it.

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