Trump Administration Orders Restart of Offshore Oil Pipeline, California Sues Citing Overreach

California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a federal lawsuit in San Francisco to block a March 13 order by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright that directed the restart of the Sable Offshore pipeline system on the Santa Barbara coast, which had been shut down for over a decade. The order invoked the Defense Production Act, a Cold War-era emergency law designed for wartime production, to supersede state environmental regulations and federal permitting requirements. California argues the administration is engaging in an unprecedented power grab with no actual energy emergency—domestic oil production is at record highs—and that the DPA does not authorize the DOE to excuse compliance with the California Coastal Act, Clean Water Act, or to compel private companies to enter contracts. The administration claims the restart is necessary for 'national energy security,' though critics note the U.S. is currently a net energy exporter. The lawsuit escalates a legal dispute over the Trump admini...

"This is an unprecedented power grab. The Trump administration is misusing emergency authority to force the restart of an offshore oil operation that has been shut down for more than a decade, with no genuine emergency to justify it." — California Attorney General Rob Bonta announcing the lawsuit against the Trump administration's use of the Defense Production Act to restart the Sable Offshore pipeline