Our Chapter’s local elected officials launched an investigation on May 27 into Sable Offshore's politicized efforts to restart oil drilling operations off the Santa Barbara – Gaviota Coast.
Financial ties to President Trump were outlined, notably that Sable executives have directly contributed to President Trump’s campaigns. A letter accompanying the investigation said, “You have contributed over $300,000 to Super PACs like Right to Rise USA and Senate Leadership Fund, which made contributions to President Trump’s 2016 and 2024 campaigns.”
“Additionally, Gregory Patrinely, Executive Vice President and CFO of Sable, contributed thousands of dollars to Trump-aligned committees in 2020 and 2024. During his campaign, President Trump promised to reverse environmental rules for your industry in exchange for $1 billion in donations. It is difficult to avoid the inference that actions like the use of DPA to overcome state laws on behalf of an oil producer represent a fulfillment of that “pay to play” promise. “
Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Congressmember Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.-24), and members of the California congressional delegation launched the inquiry and are demanding answers on the company’s collaboration with the Trump administration to invoke the Defense Production Act (DPA) in relation to this project.
In a letter to Sable’s CEO and Chairman Jim C. Flores, the lawmakers raise concerns about the timeline of Sable’s accrued lawsuits, cease and desist orders, fines, etc. dating back from April 2025 to March 2026.
They demand Sable preserve all their internal communication records between the company and Trump administration officials related to the restart.
“The administration’s reliance on the Defense Production Act (DPA)—no doubt in consultation and coordination with lawyers representing Sable—is a serious misuse of a federal law meant to be invoked for national security reasons, not to enrich an industry already making record profits,” the lawmakers wrote.
“Californians do not want oil production restarting along their coasts and have voted repeatedly for California laws that block coastal oil production. The environmental impacts, along with the economic fallout from those impacts, are simply too great, especially when there is little to no benefit for California consumers,” the lawmakers concluded.
