Press Releases

U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24), U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Adam Schiff (D-CA), and House Natural Resources Committee top Democrat Jared Huffman (D-CA-02), led 30 of their colleagues in calling on House and Senate Armed Services Committee leaders to reject the Hunt Amendment’s provision (Section 2835) in the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which would grant unprecedented eminent domain authority to the federal government to benefit Sable Offshore Corporation.

“The NDAA has long served as a bipartisan vehicle to strengthen our national security and support our servicemembers. However, we are deeply concerned by the inclusion of Section 2835, which would grant extraordinary eminent domain authority to the federal government to circumvent established environmental protections for the benefit of a single private company. Given the sweeping implications of this provision, we believe this policy rider does not belong in the NDAA and, therefore, should be removed from the final conference agreement,” wrote the lawmakers. 

The lawmakers explain how this provision would jeopardize the California coastal economy and do little to strengthen our nation’s energy security.

“California’s coastal economy supports roughly 511,000 jobs and generates over $51.3 billion in GDP from marine-economy activities — largely in tourism and recreation. Another oil spill from a corrosion-prone pipeline that has spilled before would jeopardize the economic security of everyday Americans that rely on our coastal economy for their livelihoods,” the lawmakers continued. “In addition, there is no evidence that this provision would meaningfully advance our nation's energy security. Recent spikes in gasoline prices driven by market uncertainty surrounding the war in Iran underscore that global oil markets—not a single offshore project—continue to dictate prices at the pump.”

The letter goes on to highlight the unprecedented nature of Section 2835, which would grant the federal government extraordinary powers to seize property for the sole benefit of a single private organization.

“The NDAA should not be used to circumvent established permitting processes or create special authorities for individual projects that have failed to secure the approvals required under existing law. The federal government's power of eminent domain is among its most significant authorities and should be exercised only when there is a clear and compelling public purpose—not to resolve private infrastructure disputes or increase the profitability of a single company—at the expense of communities who have to live with the consequences of an oil spill,” said the lawmakers.

The full letter is available HERE.

Joining Carbajal, Padilla, Schiff, and Huffman the letter is co-signed by U.S. Representatives Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), Dave Min (D-CA-47), Julia Brownley (D-CA-26), Lou Correa (D-CA-46), Mike Thompson (D-CA-04), Brad Sherman (D-CA-32), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-18), Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-11), John Garamendi (D-CA-08), Gil Cisneros (D-CA-31), Ted Lieu (D-CA-36), Derek Tran (D-CA-45), Mike Levin (D-CA-49), Juan Vargas (D-CA-52), Judy Chu (D-CA-28), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19), Laura Friedman (D-CA-30), Robert Garcia (D-CA-42), Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12), Kevin Mullin (D-CA-15), Mark Takano (D-CA-39), Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA-06), Ro Khanna (D-CA-17), Scott Peters (D-CA-50), Doris Matsui (D-CA-07), Pete Aguilar (D-CA-33), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37), George Whitesides (D-CA-27), Luz Rivas (D-CA-29), and Sara Jacobs (D-CA-51). 

Background

Sable Offshore acquired the Santa Ynez Unit from ExxonMobil in 2024. The pipeline had been out of service since the 2015 Refugio oil spill. In March 2026, Energy Secretary Chris Wright invoked the Defense Production Act and ordered Sable to restore pipeline operations. 

Carbajal has been a leader in opposing the Sable pipeline’s forced restart.

In September 2026, Carbajal led a bicameral group of colleagues in filing an amicus brief in California v. Wright to challenge the Trump Administration’s use of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to facilitate the restart of the Sable Offshore oil pipeline system along the California Central Coast. The brief argues that the Administration has failed to identify a legitimate national defense need for Sable’s crude oil and that the DPA order does not satisfy the statutory requirements for invoking this extraordinary authority.

In July 2026, Carbajal spoke on the House floor against the NDAA’s Hunt amendment, which would grant the federal government unprecedented access to California-owned public lands associated with the Santa Ynez Unit and Las Flores Pipeline System.

In May 2026, Carbajal, Schiff, and members of the California congressional delegation launched an inquiry into Sable’s efforts to restart oil drilling off the California coast and demanded answers on the company’s collaboration with the Trump administration to invoke the DPA in relation to this project.

Last year, Carbajal, Schiff, Padilla, and members of the California congressional delegation demanded answers from the Trump administration on its involvement in Sable’s attempts to restart the pipeline.