The Seneca-Cayuga Tribe filed a federal lawsuit against the state Oklahoma on Monday, saying its tobacco manufacturing corporation is about to collapse.

The tribe says the state has forced the corporation to pay $10 million into a tobacco escrow account. The state established the account as part of a billion-dollar settlement with big tobacco companies.

Small tobacco manufacturers that didn't participate in the settlement are required to pay into the account to cover potential liabilities [Oklahoma attorney general Tobacco Information]. But the tribe says its sovereign immunity protects the corporation from the payments.

Get the Story:
Tribe sues over tobacco escrow account (AP 8/2)

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