BP money eyed for two-storm damaged counties
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (NEWS SERVICE FLORIDA) - More than $9 million of BP oil-spill settlement money could be targeted to help a pair of Panhandle counties struggling with the costs of Hurricane Michael.
Board members of the non-profit Triumph Gulf Coast on April 29 will review recommendations to provide grants of $2.65 million for property-tax assistance to Gulf County and $6.67 million for property-tax assistance to Bay County.
Created by the Legislature, Triumph Gulf Coast oversees three-quarters of the $2 billion the state will get over the next 12 years through the BP settlement from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster.
In February, the board agreed to create a $15 million Triumph Gulf Coast Hurricane Michael Recovery Fund, which will be available for bridge loans, property-tax assistance and other relief for local governments in Bay, Franklin, Gulf and Wakulla counties.
At the time, board members said the BP settlement money they oversee isn’t a replacement for anticipated state and federal assistance for the storm, which devastated parts of Northwest Florida more than six months ago.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.