[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 10020]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 ENSURE ACCOUNTABILITY WITH THE FEDERAL SHARE OF THE TOBACCO SETTLEMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ROBERT A. WEYGAND

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 18, 1999

  Mr. WEYGAND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my extreme 
disappointment with the inclusion of a particular legislative provision 
within the conference report for the FY 1999 Emergency Supplemental 
Appropriations Bill.
  This legislative rider, attached to the appropriations legislation in 
the other body and approved by the conference committee, prohibits the 
federal government from recovering any of the federal share of the 
master settlement reached between the states and the tobacco industry. 
When the states brought their individual cases against the tobacco 
industry, they did so to recover certain health care costs, including 
Medicaid costs. Since the federal government pays a portion of these 
costs, I believe the federal government has a right to determine which 
activities it should fund with its share of the settlement. While I 
believe the federal government should return the federal share to the 
states, it should only be done if the federal share is spent on tobacco 
control and other programs which seek to improve the public health.
  This rider does nothing to ensure that any money form the settlement 
is spent on important anti-smoking programs and public health programs. 
This is wrong. In my view, returning the federal share to the states 
without proper accountability abdicates our duty to ensure this federal 
money is invested and spent wisely. Throughout the country, governors, 
state legislatures and citizens are debating how their settlements 
should be spent. While a great deal of these proposals may be 
admirable, some are not targeted to improving health care and control 
tobacco, as intended by the settlement.
  According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, approximately 5,000 
children in Rhode Island each year become new daily smokers and 35% of 
high school students smoke. Nearly one million packs of cigarettes are 
sold to minors in Rhode Island each year. If current trends continue, 
it is estimated that 23,000 of Rhode Island's children will later die 
from smoking. On behalf of the children in my state and the countless 
children and adults throughout this nation who are negatively impacted 
by smoking, I urge the fifty governors, state legislators and citizens 
to work together to ensure this federal money is invested wisely in 
tobacco control and public health.

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