Trump administration announces plan for new oil drilling off the coasts of California and Florida

The Trump administration announced on Thursday plans for new oil drilling off the California and Florida coasts for the first time in decades, pushing forward a controversial project that has already drawn bipartisan opposition from state officials and environmental advocates.

The proposal, which seeks to expand U.S. oil production, would open federal waters that have been protected from new drilling since the mid-1980s in California and since 1995 in the eastern Gulf of Mexico near Florida. The plan represents a significant shift in energy policy since Trump took office for a second term in January.

Since returning to the White House, Trump has systematically reversed former President Joe Biden’s climate-focused policies to pursue what he calls U.S. “energy dominance” in global markets. Trump, who recently described climate change as “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world,” created a National Energy Dominance Council with instructions to rapidly increase U.S. fossil fuel production.

At the same time, the administration has blocked renewable energy initiatives such as offshore wind development and canceled billions in grants supporting clean energy projects nationwide.

The drilling plan proposes six offshore lease sales between 2027 and 2030 along the California coast. It also calls for new drilling in the Gulf of Mexico at least 100 miles off Florida’s shoreline in a newly designated “South-Central Gulf” region, adjacent to the central Gulf’s existing oil infrastructure of thousands of wells and hundreds of drilling platforms.

Industry representatives indicated this new designation aims to address concerns from Florida officials opposed to drilling near their tourism-dependent coastline. The plan also includes more than 20 lease sales off Alaska, including a newly designated “High Arctic” area more than 200 miles offshore in the Arctic Ocean.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum emphasized the long-term nature of the plan, noting it would take years for oil from new leases to reach the market. “By moving forward with the development of a robust, forward-thinking leasing plan, we are ensuring that America’s offshore industry stays strong, our workers stay employed, and our nation remains energy dominant for decades to come,” Burgum said.

The American Petroleum Institute lauded the announcement as a “historic step” toward unlocking more offshore resources. Industry groups have pointed to California’s history as an oil-producing state, arguing it already possesses the infrastructure to support expanded production.

However, the proposal has faced immediate and strong pushback from officials in both states. In Florida, a spokesperson for Republican Governor Ron DeSantis urged the administration to reconsider, while Republican Senator Rick Scott insisted that Florida’s coasts “must remain off the table for oil drilling.”

Scott, a Trump ally, previously helped persuade the administration to abandon a similar offshore drilling plan in 2018 when he served as governor. Both Scott and Florida Republican Senator Ashley Moody recently introduced legislation to maintain the drilling moratorium established during Trump’s first term.

California Governor Gavin Newsom called the administration’s plan “idiotic” and vowed to “use every tool at our disposal to protect our coastline.” California has been a leader in restricting offshore drilling since the catastrophic 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill that helped catalyze the modern environmental movement. While no new federal leases have been offered there since the mid-1980s, production continues from existing platforms.

Newsom has consistently supported greater offshore protections, particularly after a 2021 spill near Huntington Beach, and has backed congressional efforts to ban new offshore drilling along the West Coast entirely. Despite this opposition, the Trump administration has supported plans by Houston-based Sable Offshore Corp. to restart production in waters off Santa Barbara that were damaged by a 2015 oil spill.

Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office to reverse Biden’s ban on future offshore oil drilling on the East and West coasts. A federal court later struck down Biden’s order that had withdrawn 625 million acres of federal waters from oil development.

Lawmakers from both affected states have raised alarms about potential economic and environmental consequences. California Representative Jared Huffman noted the sweeping scope of the proposal: “This is not just a little bit offshore drilling. This is the entire California coast, every inch of Alaska, even the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Basically, everywhere Big Oil has been salivating to drill for decades.”

Florida Republican Representative Jimmy Patronis led a group of lawmakers who petitioned Trump to withdraw certain parcels off the Florida coast from leasing, warning that oil exploration could interfere with training at nearby military airbases. Meanwhile, Florida Democratic Representative Kathy Castor emphasized that the state is still recovering from the environmental and economic devastation caused by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster.

Environmental advocates have highlighted specific ecological concerns, including potential threats to the Santa Barbara Channel, an important feeding ground for endangered blue, humpback, and fin whales. “There is no way to drill for oil without causing devastating impacts,” said Maggie Hall, deputy chief counsel at the Environmental Defense Center. “The risk is unacceptable.”