Senator talks RESTORE Act

PENSACOLA, Fla. (WALA) - Florida Senator Bill Nelson made a stop in Pensacola Monday to discuss the passing of the RESTORE Act.

Congress passed the bill Friday, June 29, which will bring BP fines paid because of the Clean Water Act to the states affected by 2010’s BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Nelson was one of several officials across the Gulf Coast leading the fight in Washington D.C. to get the bill passed.

“When you pass something that will help so many people and will help the environment so much, it’s a red letter day,” said Nelson.

The RESTORE Act stands for Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourism Opportunities and Revived Economies. Officials believe the RESTORE Act will bring anywhere from $5 to $20 billion to the Gulf Coast.

RELATED: How much will the RESTORE Act pay out?

That money will be 80 percent of the fines imposed on BP due to a federal lawsuit upholding the Clean Water Act, put in place after the Exxon-Valdez oil spill off the coast of Alaska in 1989.

"It will come back to help the people and the critters of the Gulf Coast. The fact that it won't get taken and and used somewhere else was the main reason behind the law,” Nelson said.

Nelson says the bill will separate the money into four percentage groups. A percentage will be sent toward the states, the environment and economy as well as research into the long term health of the Gulf.

Dr. P. C. Wu with the Pensacola City Council said the money could also help create jobs.

“It would mean an awful lot to folks looking for employment. The second thing that’s exciting is it would help our environment. It’ll help us see any problems with sea life and help us correct them down the road,” said Wu.

Senator Nelson said it’s important to note that the passing of the RESTORE Act doesn’t mean that the Gulf Coast will get the money right away.

The timeframe for the funds depend on when the lawsuit brought against BP from the Clean Water Act is settled.

“I believe this gives a new incentive for negotiations to come to agreement on the fine money that BP will have to pay for after spilling almost 5 million barrels of oil,” Nelson said.

Nelson said it the RESTORE Act had not been passed, 10 percent of the fines would have gone to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. The rest of the funds would have gone into the U. S. Treasury.