Governor wants to wait for a big-impact project to spend BP money

People on the Coast worried that upstate politicians would raid the BP settlement for economic damages might find some solace in the governor’s budget recommendation for next year’s legislative session.

In the document released Wednesday, the Bryant administration says it wants to sock the money away until someone comes up with a project that will have “an important economic impact” on the Gulf Coast and the state.

That’s very similar to a plan proposed by many leaders on the Coast. They’d like to see the money put into a reserve fund and spent on big-ticket projects that would boost the economy. Most would like to see the money go into a fund under control of a board independent of the Legislature so the Coast wouldn’t have to fight this battle over and over.

Bryant’s proposal doesn’t go quite that far. But he does want the money to go into a reserve fund where it would earn interest that would add to the state’s reserves and possibly raise its credit ratings.

Read more here: http://www.sunherald.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article184872463.html