Welcome to

BP could be fined billions of dollars for the 2010 oil spill that hurt gulf coast businesses. Tonight there�s friction over how that money should be spent. A Congressional Hearing on the Restore Act is scheduled for Wednesday. The act would require 80 cents of every dollar to be spent restoring the coast. Jackie Roberts with the Environmental Defense Fund says spending the money on gulf coast restoration would create jobs in Florida.

�It�s BP penalties that will actually be reinvested in ecosystem restoration in the region. There are about 60 firms in Florida. Places like Jacksonville, Tampa, Tallahassee that are involved in this industry,� said Jackie Roberts.

The fines are expected to bring in between five and 21 billion dollars. Some members of congress want to use the money to pay off debt. But supporters of gulf coast restoration point to a new Duke University study that says ever million dollars spent on restoration would create 20 jobs.