Texas setting positive example on RESTORE Act priorities
AUSTIN, Texas (March 10, 2016) – As the sixth anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill approaches, Texas should serve as a model for taking measures to ensure its share of funds from the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act (RESTORE Act) is spent in an efficient and transparent manner, argues a new policy short from the R Street Institute.
Under the terms of the RESTORE Act, Texas, along with Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, each will see a share of the reported $20.8 billion settlement reached with BP to use for projects that benefit the economies and environments of the affected coastal regions.
Even as the amount and timetable of funding is being finalized, Texas has developed a draft framework for implementation, as well as draft principles and a scoring system to assign priority to certain kinds of projects, R Street Texas Director Josiah Neeley writes. Moreover, the state has developed a website where parties can submit project proposals and the public can provide feedback on existing planning documents.
“Given the vulnerability of the Texas coast to future storms, the prioritization of grants like the Bahia Grande project is encouraging,” Neeley wrote. “By encouraging the development of similar projects along the coast, Texas can ensure that its use of RESTORE Act funds has benefits that go far beyond any single project.”
