BP-Funded GCCF Doled Out More Than $5B in First Year

DUBLIN, Ohio -- The Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF), funded in full by BP and created by the Obama Administration, marked its first anniversary yesterday. It was launched following the explosion of BP's Deepwater Horizon Oil Rig in the Gulf of Mexico.

GCCF has spent the past year distributing private compensation to affected individuals in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In order to complete its task, it has employed as many as 3,000 people.

The statistics speak for themselves regarding how successful GCCF has been in its first year, according to a press release issued by the organization. GCCF has received a total of 947,892 claims. More than $5 billion has been distributed to 204,000-plus claimants, which were based on 359,441 of those claims.

Although GCCF has processed most of the claims, it still has work to do. More than 61,000 claims have been filed within the past 90 days and are not processed or denied yet. GCCF said it currently working on these.

Individuals who believe they were adversely affected by the oil spill can still file a claim. According to GCCF, the claims process will remain in place until August 2013.