Thanks to Florida voters, the state's vaunted youth antismoking campaign is back in business in a big way, flush with $58 million from the state's share of the nationwide tobacco settlement, the Associated Press reported July 25.

Last fall, voters approved a ballot initiative backed by health groups that required lawmakers to dedicate 15 percent of tobacco-settlement funds to the youth smoking-prevention campaign. "We have restored an effective youth tobacco prevention program, which includes a substantial appropriation for smoking cessation," said Don Webster, CEO of the Florida chapter of the American Cancer Society.

Florida's antismoking advertising campaign, aimed at youths, was widely praised in the 1990s for reaching teens with hard-hitting attacks on tobacco-industry executives. But the $70-million campaign soon ran afoul of state lawmakers, dwindling down to $1 million in annual spending before the ballot initiative.

The state has created a 23-member advisory committee to oversee the revived tobacco program, which may include advertising and other components.