California Democrats joined the bipartisan chorus of lawmakers calling for major changes to the Trump administration’s proposal to boost offshore oil and gas production.
What happened: A coalition of 28 Democratic lawmakers sent a letter Thursday to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and President Donald Trump opposing the administration’s proposal to hold six oil and gas lease sales in the federal waters off the California coast.
“Any expansion of offshore drilling in the waters off the coast of California and the spills that would inevitably accompany it would be devastating to the communities we represent,” the lawmakers wrote.
Why it matters: The letter, led by Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), signals California leaders’ intent to continue pushing the state’s exclusion from the new five-year National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program despite the limited leverage they have with the Trump administration.
