The Oil Pollution Act (101 H.R.1465, P.L. 101-380 [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d101:h.r.01465:/]) was passed by the 101st United States Congress to mitigate and prevent civil liability for future oil spill s off the coast of the United States . The law stated that companies must have a "plan to prevent spills that may occur" and