A high-stakes fight over who has the final say on energy policy in California is intensifying after the federal government moved to restart an oil pipeline the state says still lacks required approvals.
The dispute centers on an offshore oil unit, operated by Sable Offshore, in federal waters off the California coast and an onshore pipeline that runs through the state and state parks.
Sable Offshore, a Houston-based independent company, ignored a deadline, set for noon on March 16, set by California State Parks.
A high-stakes fight over who has the final say on energy policy in California is intensifying after the federal government moved to restart an oil pipeline the state says still lacks required approvals (FOX26).{ }
The deadline was to confirm Sable Offshore had not restarted an onshore pipeline running through Gaviota State Park in Santa Barbara County and would not do so until it received State Parks approval.
State Parks said it would pursue legal action if the company did not meet the deadline.
FOX26 received no response from Sable Offshore regarding the ultimatum.
On Friday, March 13. President Trump signed an executive order that U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright used to authorize Sable Offshore to restart production of its oil pipeline that travels through California.
The pipeline runs from Las Flores Canyon in Los Angeles County to Pentland Station in Kern County.
According to the Department of Energy, Sable’s facility can produce about 50,000 barrels of oil per day, which the department said is a 15% increase to California’s in-state oil production.
The department also reported the production could replace nearly one and a half million barrels of foreign crude oil each month.
Governor Gavin Newsom responded with a statement criticizing the executive order and calling the move an illegal attempt to restart the pipeline.
“Donald Trump started a war, admitted it would spike gas prices nationwide, and told Americans it was a small price to pay. Now he’s using this crisis of his own making to attempt what he’s wanted to do for years: open California’s coast for his oil industry friends so they can poison our beaches. This wouldn’t lower prices by a cent. This is an attempt to illegally restart a pipeline whose operators are facing criminal charges and prohibited by multiple court orders from restarting,” Governor Newsom said.
In 2015, the pipeline spilled oil at Refugio Beach State Park in Santa Barbara County, spilling more than 100,000 gallons of oil onto the beach and more than 20,000 gallons into the ocean, according to the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
Brady Bradshaw of the Center for Biological Diversity criticized the federal action.
“This order is Extreme it’s disturbing and it could mean that California wildlife and communities pay the price,” Bradshaw said. “The Trump administration’s overriding of California officials trying to do their jobs to protect the environment and protect the ocean is Just a disgusting abuse of power.”
Sable Offshore, in its own statement, said it is “putting California consumers first by increasing domestic supply of crude oil into the California market by approximately 17% and we look forward to continuing to execute as so ordered by the Defense Production Act executed on March 13, 2026,” Jim Flores, the company’s chairman and chief executive officer said. “We look forward to working closely with the Department of Energy in fully complying with the DPA and working with the Trump administration to take all necessary steps to deliver the energy necessary for the security and defense of the country.”
However, California State Parks said the company must still get approval to use the space where the pipeline runs through a state park.
State Parks sent a letter Saturday, March 14, to Sable Offshore saying the agency has tried working with the company and has received no cooperation.
State Parks said it would pursue legal action if Sable did not provide a plan for removal of the pipeline within 10 days or confirm by 12 p.m., March 16, that it had not restarted the line and would not restart it until receiving approval from the park.
There are also concerns about whether the pipeline meets safety requirements.
In Oct. 2025, the California Office of the State Fire Marshal informed Sable Offshore that the pipeline did not meet all conditions required for operation.
FOX26 reached out to the Office of the State Fire Marshal and is awaiting a response.
Sable has announced it expects oil sales to begin April 1, 2026.
California Representative. Vince Fong also weighed in, praising Wright’s order on social media and arguing it would help California’s fuel markets.
Fong wrote: “Thank you @secretarywright. To say that California needed this would be an understatement. Boosting domestic energy supply by restarting the Sable operations will help stabilize fuel markets in California now and for years to come, strengthening energy reliability AND affordability. No doubt more needs to be done in California to revitalize domestic production. It’s past time to end Gavin Newsom’s chokehold on our energy industry.”
The pipeline fight comes as California regulators consider broader changes affecting the state’s energy and climate policies.
The California Air Resources Board, also known as CARB, has proposed changes this year to California’s Greenhouse Gas Cap-and-Invest Program, which is intended to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas pollution.
The proposed changes are being suggested as agencies work to adhere to the state requirement of lowering California emissions by 40% below 1990 levels by 2030.
Critics of the program argue the proposed changes could drive up gas prices and drive out oil companies.
Last year, the California Energy Commission reported that about a quarter percent of California’s oil comes from within the state, with the rest imported from Alaska and the Middle East.