La. delegation cheers Obama’s signing of RESTORE

In signing a two-year transportation funding bill today, President Barack Obama is also signing off on the RESTORE Act, which will funnel billions of dollars in Clean Water Act fines from the 2010 BP spill to Louisiana and the four other Gulf states—with Louisiana expected to get the lion’s share. “This is a historic moment for our region,” says Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu in a news release. “The Restore Act directs that 80% of the penalty money be invested along the Gulf Coast where the injury occurred when the Deepwater Horizon blew up more than two years ago. These funds will help jump-start, in a significant way, coastal restoration in Louisiana. We have the science, the plan and the will, and all we needed was the money—let’s get started.” Republican Sen. David Vitter also released a statement calling the signing of the bill a “triple win for Louisiana.” Along with championing the RESTORE funds for the state, Vitter notes: “Since 2005, Louisiana was only getting 93.7 cents back for every dollar of state taxpayer money sent to the federal government. Now we’ll be getting $1.02 for every dollar. That is a huge jump.” Read a story from The Times-Picayune here for more on what the transportation and RESTORE bills mean for Louisiana’s coffers.