AP Wire

$7M in oil spill money taken from AG’s office

by The Associated Press

More evidence of the power struggle between JBE and Landry?

Attorney General Jeff Landry

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Attorney General Jeff Landry will have to return a $7 million oil spill recovery payment given to his agency, under a bill sent to the governor in the final minutes of the legislative session.

Landry tried unsuccessfully to get the language struck from the bill, saying the cut pushed by the Senate could damage his office's operations.

Senators say the transfer of oil spill money wasn't handled properly.

Finance Committee Chairman Eric LaFleur says the $7 million will go to Gov. John Bel Edwards' coastal office and that office will reimburse the attorney general for any legal expenses tied to work on the BP litigation settlement.

LaFleur expects the attorney general to receive at least $4.3 million.

But Landry's office worried because the bill passed Monday doesn't guarantee specific payment.