Monday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey (R) announced that the U.S. Department of Treasury has approved Alabama’s Multiyear Implementation Plan for Gulf Coast recovery. This plan, developed by the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council (AGCRC), proposes 15 activities for Direct Component RESTORE funding (also known as Bucket 1) for a total estimated cost of $192,416,759. Now that the plan has been approved, individual grant applications must be submitted to Treasury and awarded before project activity can begin.
“This is a watershed day in the reinvestment of Alabama’s Gulf Coast communities,” Governor Ivey said. “The members of the Council have worked long and hard over the past year to get us to this point; at long last, oil spill funds guaranteed to the people of Alabama through the RESTORE Act are about to be invested. I am especially grateful there has been so much public input in this process.”
The projects proposed in this plan are all located within Mobile and Baldwin Counties and are consistent with the eligible criteria as stated in the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities and Revived Economies Act of 2012 (RESTORE Act). RESTORE was passed by Congress after the BP/Deepwater Horizon oil spill. All 15 projects are in accordance with the focus areas selected by the Council which include infrastructure projects benefiting the economy and related planning assistance.
The RESTORE Act created the 10-member Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council. The council is made up of the governor, who serves as chair; the director of the Alabama State Port Authority, who serves as vice-chair; the chairman of the Baldwin County Commission; the president of the Mobile County Commission; and the mayors of Bayou La Batre, Dauphin Island, Fairhope, Gulf Shores, Mobile and Orange Beach. Former Congressman Jo Bonner serves as Governor Ivey’s representative in her absence.
“As Administrator for the Council, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is appreciative of the coordination and support provided throughout this process by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Gulf Coast Restoration,” said ADCNR Commissioner Chris Blankenship. “We look forward to working with Treasury as each grant is developed and implementation begins.”
To view the plan, click here.
