Press Releases

U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24) issued the statement below following the Trump Administration’s announcement that it is planning to open the California coast to offshore oil drilling for the first time in decades.

“Despite clear opposition from public officials, environmental experts, and residents across our state, the Administration has proposed to sell California’s coastline to Big Oil. Let me be clear: this is a reckless and dangerous move,” said Rep. Carbajal. “Trump’s plan puts delicate marine ecosystems at risk and threatens the public health of coastal communities across the West Coast – all so oil executives can line their pockets. The Central Coast knows the devastating consequences of oil spills firsthand. That’s why we’ve long stood at the forefront of the environmental justice movement. Our community is ready to lead in this fight once again, and I will do everything in my power to ensure we rise to the challenge.”

Carbajal has long led the charge against new oil drilling on the Central Coast.

Earlier this month, Carbajal co-hosted a listening session with environmental leaders from the Central Coast to discuss regional concerns over the Trump administration’s rollback of environmental protections.

In September, Carbajal joined U.S. Senators Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Alex Padilla (D-CA), and other members of the California congressional delegation to demand answers from the Trump administration on its involvement in Sable Offshore Corporation’s attempts to restart offshore oil drilling using the same pipelines that caused the Refugio State Beach oil spill of 2015.

In August, Carbajal reintroduced the Central Coast Heritage Protection Act, which would designate approximately 250,000 acres of public land in the Los Padres National Forest and Carrizo Plain National Monument as wilderness, the highest form of federal protection available. A wilderness designation would protect the land from future oil or gas drilling.

In April, Carbajal announced the reintroduction of the California Clean Coast Act. The California Clean Coast Act was the first bill Congressman Carbajal introduced as a Member of Congress, demonstrating his longstanding commitment to protecting California’s coast from offshore drilling and the devastating impact of oil spills.

In 2024, Carbajal led the effort to get the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary officially designated. The sanctuary protects approximately 4,543 square miles of waters off the Central Coast of California, an area considered culturally, spiritually, and historically significant to the Chumash and Salinan Peoples, from oil drilling.