President Trump is Unleashing American Energy While Gov. Newsom Tries to Restrict Offshore Drilling

“Governor Newsom announces historic new ocean protections as Trump pushes offshore drilling,” a press release from the governor’s office proclaims. “As the Trump administration continues its assault on California’s coast, Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the state is protecting more of its coastal waters than ever before by creating the first new marine protected areas in more than a decade and expanding protections for vital ocean habitats.”

Let’s start with the law: The governor cannot prohibit oil and gas drilling, or new leases, in federal waters off California’s coast.

Federal preemption is the doctrine under which valid federal law overrides conflicting state law. It rests on the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which makes the Constitution, federal statutes, and treaties “the supreme Law of the Land.”

In late September, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 1448 by Assemblyman Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara), “to protect California’s coastline from federal offshore oil and gas drilling.”

It really is appalling that the elected representative from Santa Barbara is actively deterring the oil and gas industry in his own region, when supporting more drilling would lead to energy abundance, and would help greatly to lower oil and gas prices.

Hart’s bill amends the Public Resources Code relating to the California Coastal Sanctuary, tidelands, and submerged lands.

Its core provisions include:

• Prohibiting the use of leases and oil- and gas-related infrastructure on state tidelands and submerged lands (within state waters) to support Pacific Outer Continental Shelf (federal) leases issued after January 1, 2026.
• Restricting certain exceptions that could allow new state oil or gas leases in the Coastal Sanctuary, particularly in designated California marine protected areas or national marine sanctuaries.
• Strengthening oversight of existing leases, including requirements for the State Lands Commission to consider additional environmental, safety, and public factors before approving renewals, transfers, or modifications.

California has long prohibited new oil and gas drilling in state waters. But California cannot prohibit oil and gas drilling, or new leases, in federal waters off its coast. Federal jurisdiction over the Outer Continental Shelf, generally beyond 3 nautical miles, is clear under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act; the state has no authority to veto or ban federal leasing or operations.

The promotional rah-rah language from Newsom’s office, the NRDC, and other environmental groups emphasizes coastal protection against federal plans, while the legal reality remains that the state cannot dictate what happens in federal waters.

In April 2025, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum directed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to initiate the first step in a robust public engagement process to develop a new schedule for offshore oil and gas lease sales on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, the DOI announced.

“Launching the process to develop the 11th National Outer Continental Shelf Program marks a decisive step toward securing American Energy Dominance,” said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum. “Through a transparent and inclusive public engagement process, we are reinforcing our commitment to responsible offshore energy development—driving job creation, bolstering economic growth and strengthening American energy independence. Under President Donald J. Trump’s leadership, we are unlocking the full potential of our offshore resources to benefit the American people for generations to come.”

President Trump’s Executive Order 14154 from January 2025, “Unleashing American Energy,” precipitated the process to develop the schedule for offshore oil and gas lease sales on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. And it underscores the national interest in maximizing the use of affordable, reliable domestic energy. The order establishes U.S. policy to “encourage energy exploration and production on federal lands and waters, including the Outer Continental Shelf, to meet the needs of our citizens and solidify the United States as a global energy leader long into the future.”

President Trump’s order was done not only to eliminate the “electric vehicle (EV) mandate” and promote true consumer choice, but to “protect the United States’s economic and national security and military preparedness by ensuring that an abundant supply of reliable energy is readily accessible in every State and territory of the Nation.”

The blanket “wisdom” that offshore oil and gas production harms the surrounding environment, ignores the fact that one of the largest sources of marine hydrocarbon pollution is offshore natural oil seepage. The Santa Barbara coast of California has the world’s second most prolific oil seepage areas, extending for about 80 miles along the coastline. One of the side affects of offshore oil production has been the reduction of oil and gas seepage due to decreases in subsea oil-reservoir pressure.

In March 2026, California sued the Trump administration to keep the oil pipeline on Santa Barbara coast shut off. “The legal fight pits the Trump administration and Sable Offshore Corp. against California officials and environmental groups,” Calmatters reported.

U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson of the Central District of California, sided with the federal government and Sable in a consolidated ruling, that the Trump administration order under the Defense Production Act (“DPA”) allows Sable Offshore Corporation to flow oil through its onshore pipeline, despite California’s contention that the pipeline’s operation violates state law.