Thousands of Americans would be made very wealthy by the tobacco Bill before the US Senate this week. The anti-smoking Bill, which in-cludes one of the largest transfers of wealth from corporations to government and individuals in US business history, is expected to be put to a final vote tomorrow or when lawmakers return from Monday's Memorial Day holiday break.

Debate has raged over the Bill's exact contents, but the final version is certain to include an unprecedented shift in capital. The 200 lawyers who handled the original litigation for states and individuals would receive 25% of the states' portion of the $360 billion (£220 billion) raised over 25 years through higher cigarette taxes.

Hundreds of tobacco farmers in several Southern states could become millionaires from an $18 billion portion of the package designed to offset their losses.

Congress will happily disperse the rest of the money - either through tax cuts, increased spending, or both. The totals are calculated on a 25-year basis so the numbers look huge. Still, a new tax of about $1.10 a pack would raise an estimated $13 billion to $14 billion annually in the first few years.

The legislation in Senate this week is much harsher on leading cigarette makers BAT, Philip Morris and RJ Reynolds than was the settlement proposed by the companies with the blessing of state legislators last summer.

That would have provided nearly total relief from court cases at a modest cost to the companies. The package needed Washington's approval, however, and national lawmakers largely rejected it as too lenient.

Now the focus has shifted from saving an industry to stopping teenagers smoking. The anti-tobacco turn surprised many analysts who thought the industry's historically strong ties with Capitol Hill would help it marshal through an affordable bill.

Instead, the Senate's final package is expected to provide minimal relief from litigation while raising taxes on a pack of cigarettes by $1.10, imposing stringent regulations and limiting the ability to attract new customers.

The Senate is only the first step in the legislative process. The House will take up the issue in the summer, giving the tobacco industry a few short weeks to try to change the legislation.

But analysts say the chances of getting favourable legislation, or killing an unfavourable bill, appear slim when politicians are eagerly eyeing a new source of revenue while wanting to appear concerned about rising rates of teenage smoking.

© Associated Newspapers Ltd., 21 May 1998
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