Trump Admin Launches Environmental Review for California Offshore Oil Lease Sales

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced Wednesday that it will begin preparing a programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) to evaluate potential offshore oil and gas lease sales across California’s Outer Continental Shelf — a move that reopens debate over drilling in waters that have been largely off-limits for decades.

A Notice of Intent scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on February 27 triggers a 30-day public scoping period covering the Northern, Central, and Southern California Planning Areas. The review represents the first formal step toward analyzing a representative lease sale under the 11th National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, with potential sales currently targeted for 2027.

Acting BOEM Director Matt Giacona framed the move as part of a broader energy strategy.

“California households are facing an energy affordability crisis, and inaction is no longer an option,” Giacona said. “This Notice of Intent reflects the administration’s commitment to responsibly evaluating offshore leasing as part of a broader strategy to lower costs, strengthen energy security, and support American jobs.”

According to BOEM, the representative lease sale would include all unleased blocks in federally managed portions of the planning areas that may contain economically recoverable oil and gas resources.

Unified West Coast Opposition

The announcement comes amid strong pushback from West Coast governors.

In January, California Governor Gavin Newsom joined Oregon Governor Tina Kotek and Washington Governor Bob Ferguson in submitting formal opposition to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and BOEM.

“If offshore drilling is too dangerous for Mar-a-Lago, it’s too dangerous for working families on our coasts,” Newsom said, citing risks to fisheries, tourism, and coastal communities. “We’ll use every legal tool available to stop Donald Trump’s offshore drilling plan.”

California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot noted that opposition to new offshore leasing has spanned administrations of both parties for decades, referencing coordinated West Coast letters sent in 2006, 2008, 2014, and 2017 opposing expanded offshore development.

Economic and Environmental Stakes

California’s coastal economy generates more than $44 billion annually, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs tied to tourism, commercial fishing, shipping, and recreation.

The state’s history with offshore oil disasters underscores the risks. The 2021 Amplify Spill at Huntington Beach released approximately 25,000 gallons of crude oil from a pipeline breached by an anchored containership strike, resulting in $210 million in civil and criminal penalties. The 2015 Refugio Spill on the Gaviota Coast spilled 100,000 gallons from a crude oil pipeline, killing scores of animals. The catastrophic 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill, which released over 4.2 million gallons from a platform blowout, launched the modern environmental movement.

Part of Broader Offshore Expansion

The California review follows BOEM’s November rollout of a broader offshore development agenda. Last week, the agency launched its third offshore oil and gas lease sale under Trump’s signature One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which mandates 30 Gulf lease sales and six Cook Inlet sales in Alaska over the coming decades.

BOEM emphasized that issuing the Notice of Intent does not authorize drilling or guarantee a lease sale. The PEIS process will gather public input and evaluate environmental impacts before any leasing decisions are made. The agency is also inviting qualified government entities to participate as cooperating agencies in the review.

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