Louisiana Coast Hurricane Fix Blocked by Oil-Backed Debt Delay

The federal government’s failure to write rules for offshore-drilling payments is blocking Louisiana from borrowing as much as $1 billion to fix a coastline ravaged by two hurricanes and the largest U.S. oil spill.

Louisiana, with the most U.S. offshore drilling rigs, according to oilfield-services company Baker Hughes Inc., needs cash to build protective levees, restore beaches and divert water to freshen swamps. To raise funds, Governor Bobby Jindal’s administration is considering selling bonds backed by money from the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act or using it for a federal loan, the state’s coastal authority says in its annual plan.