	Introduction

In the wake of the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig on April 20, 2010, federal agencies, state and local government agencies, and responsible parties faced an unprecedented challenge. This report provides a summary update of selected issues related to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill: 
Oil spill response, Fate of the oil, Gulf Coast restoration, Economic claims and other payments, Civil and criminal settlements, Department of the Interior regulatory developments, Dispersant regulations, Congressional activity, and Investigations and reports. In February 2015, a Coast Guard memorandum announced that in March 2015, the Gulf Coast Incident Management Team would "transition from Phase III (Operations) ... and reconstitute as a Phase IV Documentation Team." As part of that transition, Coast Guard field unit commanders would respond to reports of oil spills in their respective areas of responsibility. As of April 2015, 30 response personnel, including federal officials and civilians, are working on activities related to the Deepwater Horizon incident. The Deepwater Horizon NRDA process is in the restoration planning phase. In 2011, BP agreed to provide $1 billion toward early restoration projects in the Gulf of Mexico to address injuries to natural resources caused by the spill. In May 2013, the trustees proposed additional projects under a third phase. The plan for these projects, finalized in June 2014, proposes funding an additional 44 early restoration projects at a cost of approximately $627 million. Gulf Restoration and the RESTORE Act20

In addition to natural resource damages that were a direct result of the spill, the Deepwater Horizon incident generated interest in natural resource issues in the region that were present before the spill occurred. Eighty percent of any administrative and civil Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 311 penalties paid by responsible parties in connection with the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill will provide the revenues for the trust fund. Potential CWA civil penalties against BP, which could be considerable, are discussed below. BP has appealed this ruling. As of December 2014, BP has spent over $14 billion in cleanup operations. Settlements from various parties, to date, total almost $6 billion. The $4 billion would be distributed as follows:
$2.394 billion to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to support restoration efforts in the Gulf states, $1.15 billion to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, $350 million to the National Academy of Sciences for oil spill prevention and response research, $100 million to the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund, and $6 million to the General Treasury. In the civil settlement, Transocean agreed to pay $1 billion, of which 80% ($800 million) will go into the newly created Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund (pursuant to the RESTORE Act in P.L. DOI Safety Reforms and Regulatory Developments

The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill generated considerable interest in offshore drilling safety and related issues. On October 1, 2011, DOI divided BOEMRE into three separate entities: the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue. April 13, 2015: proposed rule that would alter the requirements for blowout preventers and specific drilling practices/procedures. EPA Dispersant Regulations

EPA issued a proposed rule on January 22, 2015, that would amend the existing dispersant regulations (40 CFR Part 300, Subpart J). Dispersants received considerable attention during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response. EPA's January 2015 proposed rule would, among other provisions:
revise and expand the testing requirements that must be performed to determine eligibility for EPA's product schedule; establish minimum criteria for toxicity and revise the minimum criteria for efficacy for a dispersant to be listed on the product schedule; amend and clarify the process for pre-authorization of dispersant use; and require monitoring of various environmental parameters when dispersants are used in specific situations (e.g., subsurface application or extended surface application). As time progressed, oil-spill-related legislative activity decreased and, in general, addressed topics not directly related to the Deepwater Horizon incident. Provisions in the first two laws generally concerned short-term matters that will not have a lasting impact on oil spill governance.
In the wake of the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, federal agencies, state and local government agencies, and responsible parties faced an unprecedented challenge. An oil discharge continued for 87 days, resulting in the largest ever oil spill in U.S. waters.
Led by the U.S. Coast Guard, response activities were extensive for several years but have diminished substantially:
At the height of operations (summer of 2010), response personnel numbered over 47,000. As of April 2015, 30 response personnel, including federal officials and civilians, are working on activities related to the Deepwater Horizon incident. In February 2015, a Coast Guard memorandum announced that in March 2015, the Gulf Coast Incident Management Team (GCIMT) would "transition from Phase III (Operations) ... and reconstitute as a Phase IV Documentation Team." As part of that transition, Coast Guard field unit commanders would respond to reports of oil spills in their respective areas of responsibility.
As one of the responsible parties, BP has spent over $14 billion in cleanup operations. In addition, BP has paid over $15 billion to the federal government, state and local governments, and private parties for economic claims and other expenses, including reimbursements for response costs related to the oil spill. BP and other responsible parties have agreed to civil and/or criminal settlements with the Department of Justice (DOJ). Settlements from various parties, to date, total almost $6 billion. BP's potential civil penalties under the Clean Water Act (CWA), which could be considerable, are not yet determined.
The natural resources damage assessment (NRDA) process, conducted by federal, state, and other trustees, is ongoing and is now in its restoration planning phase. BP agreed to pay $1 billion to support early restoration projects. Ten such projects have been funded to date, with aggregate estimated costs of approximately $71 million. In December 2013, the trustees proposed an additional $627 million to fund 44 restoration projects. The trustees prepared a final plan for these projects in June 2014.
In addition, the RESTORE Act, enacted in 2012, directs 80% of any administrative and civil CWA penalty revenue into a newly created trust fund, which supports environmental and economic restoration projects in the Gulf states. Approximately $800 million is expected to be available from a civil CWA settlement with Transocean—one of the responsible parties—but projects have yet to receive funding.
The Deepwater Horizon incident generated considerable interest in offshore drilling safety and related issues. In 2011, the Secretary of the Department of the Interior (DOI) redefined the responsibilities previously performed by the Minerals Management Service (MMS) and reassigned the functions of the offshore energy program among three separate organizations: the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR).
These agencies have promulgated several rulemaking changes, some of which are based on issues raised by the Deepwater Horizon spill. For example, on April 13, 2015, BSEE released a proposed rule (prior to Federal Register publication) that would alter the requirements for blowout preventers and specific drilling practices/procedures.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a rule on January 22, 2015, that would amend dispersant regulations in 40 CFR Part 300, Subpart J. Dispersants received considerable attention during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response. EPA's January 2015 proposed rule would, among other provisions, establish a threshold for toxicity and revise the minimum criteria for dispersant effectiveness.
During and soon after the spill response, congressional interest was high, but it has since decreased. Although previous Congresses (111th-113th) enacted several oil-spill-related bills, the provisions in these laws (other than the RESTORE Act) generally concern short-term matters that did not have a lasting impact on oil spill governance. In general, oil-spill-related bills in recent years have addressed issues not directly related to the Deepwater Horizon incident.