The Trump administration intends to revoke California's coastal protections unless the state agrees to a list of corrective actions.

Trump moves to strip California of coastal protections The Trump administration said it would strip California of its authority to protect its coastline unless state regulators agreed to more than a dozen “corrective actions” that would benefit close allies of the White House, according to the draft findings of a controversial federal review. Citing “a pattern of jurisdictional and regulatory overreach,” the 92-page review said California coastal authorities have demonstrated “unjustified hostility and political bias against offshore drilling opportunities, oil and gas projects broadly, and SpaceX’s launch activities.” The document, which The Times obtained through a public records request, said future federal funding for the state’s coastal management program has been suspended “unless and until the identified deficiencies are satisfactorily addressed.” At the top of the list of corrective actions are demands that the California Coastal Commission meet with SpaceX and “discuss any outstanding concerns about political bias and ... productive next steps moving forward" at the Vandenberg Space Port in Santa Barbara County. It also directed coastal authorities to discuss “any outstanding concerns about regulatory burden and overreach” with Sable Offshore Corp., a Texas-based oil company that has sought Trump’s influence to bypass state oversight and restart a once-dormant offshore operation off the Santa Barbara coast. The state’s leading coastal agency must also issue an official statement by January pledging that California “will not categorically oppose initiatives led by certain entities, or relating to certain industries, such as oil and gas, or involving certain activities, such as offshore drilling,” according to the preliminary findings by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office for Coastal Management. Never before has the federal government attempted to strip a coastal state of its rights in this way, and the consequences could be far-reaching if the draft findings become final. The action also comes as the president has sought to dismantle clean air policies, endangered species protections and other landmark environmental regulations that have long drawn the ire of industry and fossil fuel producers. https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2026-10-24/trump-administration-will-strip-california-of-coastal-protections

Trump wants to strip California of coastal protections unless state meets list of demands (Rosanna Xia/Los Angeles Times) https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2026-10-24/trump-administration-will-strip-california-of-coastal-protections http://www.memeorandum.com/261024/p43#a261024p43