Judge Won't Stop Oil and Gas Sale (LA)

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nat-gen/2006/aug/14/081409411.html

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A federal judge Monday dealt Gov. Kathleen Blanco a defeat in her campaign to force the government to give Louisiana a bigger share of the royalties from offshore oil and gas drilling.

U.S. District Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt turned down Blanco's request to block Wednesday's sale of federal natural gas and oil leases in the western Gulf of Mexico.

Blanco has threatened to block such sales until the state is given more royalties to help it recover from Hurricane Katrina. She filed a lawsuit claiming the federal government has not done enough to protect Louisiana's wetlands from damage from drilling.

Englehardt said the state will have a strong case when the dispute goes to trial in November, but allowing the sale to go on would not harm the state.

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Louisiana is screwed because the oil companies deliberately locate equipment/platforms outside the 3 mile limit, so they won't have to pay anything to the state. The money from Louisiana, in a sense, keeps flowing into Texas, but everyone complains how New Orleans can't do anything for themselves...

"Quit stealing our money!" comes a frequent reply in some of the doc's later interviews...

had been made, affecting their ability to collect money they viewed as partially/rightfully theirs...

I assume Blanco addressed this in her lawsuit...

to tap oil deposits a long way away from the rig...

n/t

if voted in, I wonder who some of his donors where?

hmmmmm