(Radio Iowa) – The state has received its annual tobacco settlement payment. The state is getting around 53 million dollars as part of the 1998 settlement with tobacco companies. Around 12 million dollars of that payment will go into the state’s account. The state sold bonds as a sort of loan against the settlement — and the rest of the money will go to pay off bondholders. The Attorney General says the state has received one-point-four BILLION dollars since the settlement was reached. The A-G says national smoking rates have been cut roughly in half since the settlement was reached and the money was put toward efforts to help people stop smoking.