A new paper from the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling says the restoration effort in the gulf region could be hampered by the absence of an integrated strategy and sustained sources of funding. The “working paper,” penned by commission staff and released on Feb. 24, says a “lack of sustained and predictable funding, project coordination and long-term planning have resulted in incomplete and often ineffective efforts to restore the gulf” from last year’s spill. The paper says that establishing the Gulf Coast Restoration Task Force to coordinate the remediation effort is a good “first step,” but the group lacks the authority to allocate funding for specific projects. The paper recommends Congress establish a Gulf Coast Recovery Council to oversee and implement restoration funding sources.