State auditor releases report of Gulf Coast Restoration Fund
State Auditor Shad White released a new audit Monday, raising concerns about how hundreds of millions of dollars meant to help the Mississippi Coast are being spent.
The report finds 62 percent of projects funded through the Gulf Coast Restoration Fund were approved by legislature without recommendations from either the fund’s advisory board or the Mississippi Development Authority.
The fund was created to help coastal communities recover after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. The fund is expected to receive more than half a billion dollars through 2023 to support economic recovery and development along the Coast.
White says the money is critical for the future of Mississippi’s Coast and should go toward high-impact projects with clear performance goals, but he warns the legislature’s current process allows lawmakers to fund projects even if they weren’t recommended by experts.
