[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 14951]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1530
          DEEPWATER RESTORATION: A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

  (Mr. PALAZZO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. PALAZZO. Mr. Speaker, on April 20, 2010, America witnessed the 
worst man-made disaster in our Nation's history. Mississippi lost four 
of her native sons to the explosion; and, over the course of 3 months, 
nearly 5 million barrels of oil gushed into the Gulf of Mexico, causing 
extreme economic and environmental damage.
  Yesterday, the bipartisan RESTORE Act was introduced that will put 
the Gulf States on the right path to long-term recovery. The RESTORE 
Act will send 80 percent of the fines paid by BP to the areas that were 
most affected from this tragic event and will allow the Gulf States to 
invest funds in projects and programs designed to rehabilitate the 
region economically and environmentally.
  The act provides States with the flexibility to address their own 
unique and specific needs with transparency and accountability. Once BP 
is held accountable for its actions, it's only fair that those hardest 
hit will receive the relief they desperately need and deserve.
  I now urge my colleagues from across the country to do the right 
thing and support the bipartisan RESTORE Act.

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