§ 5674. Requirements
Purdon's Pennsylvania Statutes and Consolidated StatutesTitle 35 P.S. Health and SafetyEffective: November 19, 2004
Effective: November 19, 2004
35 P.S. § 5674
§ 5674. Requirements
(1) To pay a judgment or settlement on any released claim brought against such tobacco product manufacturer by the Commonwealth or any releasing party located or residing in this Commonwealth. Funds shall be released from escrow under this paragraph in the order in which they were placed into escrow and only to the extent and at the time necessary to make payments required under such judgment or settlement.
(2.1) To the extent that a tobacco product manufacturer establishes that the amount it was required to place into escrow on account of units sold in this Commonwealth in a particular year was greater than the Master Settlement Agreement payments, as determined pursuant to section IX(i) of that agreement including after final determination of all adjustments, that such manufacturer would have been required to make on account of such units sold had it been a participating manufacturer, the excess shall be released from escrow and shall revert back to such tobacco product manufacturer. The provisions of this paragraph are nonseverable. If any provision of this paragraph or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remaining provisions or applications of this paragraph are void.
<Subsec. (b)(2.2) effective upon publication of notice under section 2 of 2004, Nov. 19, P.L. 870, No. 114.>
(2.2) To the extent that a tobacco product manufacturer establishes that the amount it was required to place into escrow in a particular year was greater than the Commonwealth's allocable share of the total payments that the manufacturer would have been required to make in that year under the Master Settlement Agreement had it been a participating manufacturer, as such payments are determined pursuant to section IX(i)(2) of the Master Settlement Agreement and before any of the adjustments or offsets described in section IX(i)(3) of the Master Settlement Agreement other than the inflation adjustment, the excess shall be released from escrow and revert back to such tobacco product manufacturer.
(c) Certification.--Each tobacco product manufacturer that decides to place funds into escrow under subsection (a)(2) shall annually certify to the Attorney General that it is in compliance with subsection (a). The Commonwealth may bring a civil action against any tobacco product manufacturer that fails to place into escrow the funds required under this section. Any tobacco product manufacturer that fails in any year to place into escrow the funds required under this section shall:
(1) Be required within 15 days after a finding of a violation by the court to place such funds into escrow as shall bring it into compliance with this section. The court, upon a finding of a violation of subsection (a)(2), (b) or (c), may impose a civil penalty to be paid to the General Fund of the Commonwealth in an amount not to exceed 5% of the amount improperly withheld from escrow per day of the violation, not to exceed 100% of the original amount improperly withheld from escrow for that year.
(2) In the case of a knowing violation, be required to place the funds into escrow within 15 days after a finding of a violation by the court to bring the tobacco product manufacturer into compliance with subsections (a)(2), (b) and (c). The court, upon a finding of a knowing violation of subsection (a)(2), (b) or (c), may impose a civil penalty to be paid to the General Fund of the Commonwealth not to exceed 15% of the amount improperly withheld from escrow per day of the violation. The total amount of a civil penalty under this paragraph shall not exceed 300% of the original amount improperly withheld from escrow for that year.
(3) In the case of a second knowing violation of subsection (a)(2), (b) or (c), be prohibited from selling cigarettes to consumers within this Commonwealth for a period not to exceed two years. For purposes of this section, each year that the tobacco product manufacturer fails to place funds in escrow as required by subsections (a) and (b) shall constitute a separate offense.
Credits
2000, June 22, P.L. 394, No. 54, § 4, imd. effective. Amended 2004, Nov. 19, P.L. 870, No. 114, § 1.
35 P.S. § 5674, PA ST 35 P.S. § 5674
Current through 2023 Regular Session Act 1. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
End of Document |