Tobacco whistleblower says state misspending settlement money (Florida)

[Judi Lynn]

Posted on Tue, Feb. 10, 2004

Tobacco whistleblower says state misspending settlement money
Associated Press

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Jeffrey Wigand, a former tobacco executive whose whistle blowing made him a celebrity, said Florida's state government is committing "moral treason" by using almost all of its tobacco settlement money on programs not aimed at reducing tobacco use.

In a speech at the University of North Florida, Wigand called on Senate President Jim King, R-Jacksonville, and House Speaker Johnnie Byrd, R-Plant City, to "get back for Florida the funds that are due the children of Florida."

"The people that you have elected have a duty and responsibility to the future," Wigand said Monday.

Wigand was an executive with Brown and Williamson Tobacco Corp. when he revealed that his employer was hiding documents indicating cigarettes were both addictive and lethal. Wigand's disclosures during a "60 Minutes" interview and deposition catapulted him to national prominence in 1995 and his story inspired the 1999 movie "The Insider."
(snip/...)

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/7920139.htm

[Florida_Geek]

1. Come on this is the Florida GOP

does anybody expect them to spend wisely.

[JCMach1]

2. They have been using the money

to balance the budget in light of JEMtm's devastation cuts in property taxes.

[BiggJawn]

3. All States mis-use the "settlement money"

All that money Indiana got, and what do we get? Un-immaginative billboards with pictures of dead bugs and the caption "DDT is in Tobacco Smoke" and low-budget TV spots along the lines of "Hi...My name is Buford <kof!> And Ah'm DIEING <koff-koff!> from SEE-gar-ettes!<koff-koff-koff!>..."

We probably got enough $$$ to buy a LOT of Zyban and pay for a lot of counseling for folks who want to quit.
Instead, it's a revenue stream for the General Fund, to OFFSET REDUCED CIGARETTE TAX INCOME....