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Key to winning support in the Senate was a provision that gives four Gulf Coast states -- Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama -- 37.5 percent of the royalties collected from oil and gas production on federal leases off their shores.
Gulf Coast lawmakers had sought the money for coastal restoration projects to repair damage from storms like Hurricane Katrina.
According to congressional estimates, that provision could redistribute about $60 billion in federal leasing fees to states over the next 25 years. After taxes, drilling royalties are the government's second-biggest revenue source.
Natural gas users, from farmers to manufacturers, have backed the drilling bill because they hope the extra supplies will mean lower energy bills.