Bill Aimed At Restoring Gulf Goes To Full Senate

A bill that calls for 80 percent of BP penalties to go toward restoring the Gulf of Mexico has moved onto the full U.S. Senate.

On Wednesday, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed the bill, called the Restore Act. Next, it goes to the full Senate for a vote.

Under the bill, a restoration plan would have to be drawn up and a special council set up to oversee restoration. The bill also calls for money to be set aside for long-term studies of the Gulf.

The bill has been pushed by Gulf Coast senators and backed by environmental groups.

The BP spill occurred after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded April 20, 2010, off the coast of Louisiana, leading to the largest offshore spill in U.S. history.