Texas attorney general announces $195 million settlement with big tobacco companies

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced a $195 million settlement agreement with major tobacco companies, according to a press release.

The agreement originates from the 1998 Tobacco Settlement Agreement, under which big tobacco giants must make annual payments to Texas to compensate for smoking-related health care costs.

In the year 2015, ITG Brands LLC took over four cigarette brands from R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company — Kool, Maverick, Salem, and Winston, but none of the companies made the expected settlement payments in connection to those brands after the sale, the press release said.

Due to this reason, ITG Brands accepted to pay $195 million in back payments owed to the state of Texas moving forward.

Paxton said, “I am very pleased with the resolution to this hard-fought lawsuit. Texas taxpayers are owed substantial back payments, and we will not allow any company to shirk their obligations to the people of this state. I will continue to enforce the law – and we will never back down from a fight in order to bring justice to hard-working Texans.”