BP

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — An Associated Press investigation shows that in the year since the Gulf oil spill, officials along the coast have gone on a spending spree with BP money, dropping tens of millions of dollars on gadgets, vehicles and gear — much of which had little to do with the cleanup.

(Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) Officials with BP say an employee's laptop computer--containing personal data for thousands of people filing claims for Gulf oil spill damage-- has been lost.

WASHINGTON — People familiar with the investigation of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill say manslaughter and perjury are among the possible violations being explored by Justice Department investigators.

The Post-Katrina action group Women Of The Storm take their "FEMA tarp" blue umbrellas to Capitol Hill in Washington DC today.

SCHRIEVER, La. (AP) — It was a smaller crowd than organizers hoped for but protesters who gathered for a festival-styled protest near the BP facility in Schriever said their point was made.

(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Sen. David Vitter sent a letter to Obama’s oil spill claims czar Ken Feinberg today asking why his firm paid another lawyer to produce a report showing that Feinberg’s compensation from BP was appropriate.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The company at the center of the Gulf oil spill wants access to a key piece of evidence in the federal investigation so it can do additional testing it says a government contractor has refused to do.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Governor Bobby Jindal wants to redirect $12 million in state and federal coastal restoration funding to help re-establish oyster reefs and shoreline damaged by the Gulf oil spill.

(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Sen. David Vitter sent a letter to President Obama’s oil spill claims czar Ken Feinberg and Lamar McKay, Chairman and President of BP America, Inc., pointing out a conflict of interest with their current claims compensation contract, and has suggested a third party arbitrator to set the compensation.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The administrator in charge of Gulf oil spill claims says his efforts to compensate victims have exceeded federal law requirements.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Louisiana's congressional delegation is asking BP to help Louisiana's oyster industry immediately.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — BP's decision to resume paying dividends is rankling Gulf Coast residents who see it as another sign the company wants to move on even though many are still suffering from last year's massive oil spill.

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — Volunteers from across the country are rebuilding oyster reefs along the Gulf of Mexico's delicate shoreline, hoping to revive oyster beds under assault for decades from overharvesting, coastal development, pollution, and most recently the BP oil spill.

Many small Gulf Coast businesses could soon be closing their doors if deepwater drilling doesn't increase.

Despite reforms put in place since the massive BP oil spill, a presidential investigating panel has concluded that the government and the oil industry still haven't done enough to avert another catastrophic accident offshore.

The administrator of BP's $20 billion oil spill claims fund returns to the Gulf Coast this week amid continued complaints that he's not compensating victims enough and that payments are coming to slowly.

As 2010 comes to close, we look back at some of the year's top news stories with John Maginnis, of "LAPolitics.com".

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The owner of the rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico is refusing to honor subpoenas from a federal board that has challenged the company's involvement in monitoring the testing of a key piece of equipment that failed to stop the oil spill disaster.

EAST GRAND TERRE ISLAND, La. (AP) — Dig 2 feet into the sand on the wind-swept beach at East Grand Terre (TAIR') Island in Louisiana and up comes the foul smell of oil.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The group administering BP's compensation fund for victims of the Gulf oil spill has hired several law firms and a claims administration company to help people applying for shares of the $20 billion fund.