BP oil spill fine plan is complex

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NEW ORLEANS, July 8 (UPI) -- A distribution formula that takes coastal populations into account could put a damper on the gulf oil-spill compensation Louisiana receives, documents indicate.

The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune reported Sunday that while Louisiana will still receive the largest cut of the fines levied in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, Florida could siphon off some of the total because it has more people living along the Gulf Coast.

The newspaper said the complex distribution formula is contained in the compromise Restore Act passed by Congress last week. The bill, which was signed by President Obama, directs that Louisiana, Florida and three other gulf states received 80 percent of an estimated $5 billion-$21 billion in fines levied on the British oil producer BP for Clean Water Act violations.

The money will be used for state projects such as tourism promotion, parks improvements, flood control and wildlife habitat.