MASSACHUSETTS QUITS TOBACCO TALKS

BOSTON - Accusing cigarette makers of stalling, the attorney general of
Massachusetts yesterday pulled out of talks between tobacco-industry
officials and representatives of eight other states, including Washington.

The states are trying to negotiate an out-of-court settlement of their
lawsuits against tobacco companies to recover health-related costs of
smoking. Two tobacco companies - R.J. Reynolds Tobacco and Brown &
Williamson Tobacco - pulled out of the talks last week.

In a statement yesterday, Massachusetts Attorney General Scott Harshbarger
said he would refocus his efforts on the state's pending civil suit.

He also criticized the industry's opposition to disclosing cigarette
ingredients and its decision to run advertisements designed to sway public
opinion against additional tobacco-related taxes.

"Unless Big Tobacco shows me they are willing to take more responsibility
for protecting our children and improving public health, I am not
interested in returning to negotiations with them," Harshbarger said.

His spokesman, Ed Cafasso, said the attorney general also was upset that
the industry has refused to drop its opposition to being regulated by the
Food and Drug Administration.

Massachusetts stands to win up to $8 billion through the courts, Cafasso said.

Industry spokesman Scott Williams called Harshbarger's withdrawal
counterproductive and said tobacco companies are fighting FDA regulation to
avoid being completely shut down.

He also argued that the ingredients that go into making cigarettes are
trade secrets that shouldn't be subject to public disclosure.

Further, tobacco companies are standing by their previous offer to pay
billions in exchange for broad liability protection, Williams said.

So far that protection hasn't been forthcoming from the government, and
Williams blamed Congress for weighing down a national settlement.

The talks between cigarette makers and representatives from Massachusetts,
California, Colorado, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma,
Pennsylvania and Washington began after Congress failed to vote on a
proposal calling on tobacco companies to pay $368.5 billion over 25 years.

In a two-page letter to tobacco-company lawyers, Harshbarger accused
cigarette makers of backpedaling on earlier commitments to fund efforts to
curb teenage smoking and reduce advertising and promotions.

"The industry's defiant attitude is disappointing because for the last year
and a half, it appeared to demonstrate a real willingness to change its
public image by agreeing to sweeping measures that would dramatically
reduce youth smoking, improve the public health and save thousands of lives
well into the future," he said.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan