Overview
- The draft 2026–2031 program outlines up to 34 offshore lease sales across roughly 1.27 billion acres, including the entire California coast, areas off Florida in the eastern Gulf, and extensive Alaskan waters including the High Arctic.
- BOEM’s tentative schedule targets Alaska sales beginning next year, California auctions from 2027 to 2030, and eastern Gulf bidding in 2029, with proposed Florida tracts at least 100 miles offshore.
- Interior Secretary Doug Burgum defended the plan as necessary for jobs and U.S. energy dominance, earning support from industry groups such as the American Petroleum Institute and the National Ocean Industries Association.
- Florida Republicans including Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Rick Scott, and Sen. Ashley Moody urged adherence to Trump’s 2020 moratorium and warned of conflicts with the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range, echoing concerns raised in a letter from members of the state’s congressional delegation.
- California officials led by Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged legal and regulatory resistance, while environmental groups launched comment drives through January 22, 2026 and warned of risks to marine life, fisheries, and a coastal recreation and tourism economy they value at about $250 billion.