Baton Rouge — Federal changes to Gulf royalty-sharing rules and the 2025 appropriations picture could increase funding available to Louisiana’s coastal programs, but officials warned the full funding outlook remains mixed.

Neil McMillan of the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources told the Restoration Authority Wednesday that the recent federal legislative package raised the GOMESA cap, a move he said should translate into “significant additional dollars” arriving to the Coastal Trust Fund beginning next spring. McMillan estimated the cap increase in the bill is roughly a 30% raise and said a conservative working estimate for the state would be about $46,000,000 more per year in GOMESA receipts, subject to future energy production and royalty-rate dynamics.

McMillan described the congressional and administration actors behind the measure and credited Louisiana’s delegation and the state’s advocacy for securing the change. He cautioned, however, that other provisions in the broader federal package — including large lease sales and royalty-rate proposals that benefit Alaska — could affect long-term Gulf receipts and that royalty rates and future leasing mandates remain variables the state must monitor.

On the appropriations side, McMillan said the Army Corps of Engineers’ construction budget is tight and listed a small set of Louisiana projects included in the Corps’ FY26 materials; he said much of Congress’s community project funding is being used to advance specific Corps items submitted by members. He highlighted a set of congressional submissions that would advance planning or construction for projects including Morganza, West Bank gates/dewatering work, Southwest Coastal shoreline protection, Upper Barataria Basin work, and a CPRA request for funding of the Chandelier Islands through a Department of Interior resource-management account. McMillan noted that the House bill includes a substantial amount of community project funding and that Morganza’s requested $131,500,000 would represent a large portion of early earmark allocations.

McMillan also reported two construction‑process issues: (1) litigation and administrative changes around project labor agreements (PLAs) — he said an earlier administration memo removing a PLA requirement was itself the subject of litigation and preliminary injunctions — and (2) that the Corps had notified him of a protest related to a PLA requirement on a West Shore pump‑station contract. McMillan said both the legal landscape and ongoing protests could affect procurement and competitive bidding for Corps and federally funded work.

Board members discussed implications for long-term planning and noted that even with an increased GOMESA cap the state must continue legislative and advocacy work to secure durable revenue for coastal priorities.

Why it matters: Changes to GOMESA distribution and the annual federal appropriations process determine how much and how quickly federal funding can flow for Louisiana coastal projects, from marsh creation to large flood‑risk management efforts. Officials urged continued attention to royalty policy, lease-sale outcomes, and engagement with congressional appropriations and authorization processes.