La. to see millions from Transocean settlement
NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana lawmakers trumpeted the fact that the state will see hundreds of millions of dollars as part of the federal government's $1.4 billion settlement with Transocean today over the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The final terms of the settlement require Transocean, which owned the drilling rig that exploded and sank in 2010, to pay $1 billion in civil penalties and $400 in criminal penalties. They will also plead guilty to violating the Clean Water Act.
Senator Mary Landrieu (D-La.) sponsored the RESTORE Act this past summer, which was signed into law in July and directs 80 percent of the money from the settlement to go back into the Gulf coast for restoration efforts. Both Senators Landrieu and David Vitter (R-La.) put out statements after the settlement was announced, saying it was an important step forward for restoring the Gulf coast.
The deal also calls for Transocean to put into place several safety and emergency response improvements on its rigs. They have two years to pay the $1 billion civil penalty.
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