The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to reaffirm the County’s long-standing opposition to offshore oil drilling and seabed mining along the California coast.
In a 3–2 vote, the Board adopted a resolution opposing new offshore oil and gas development, approved a formal letter to the Trump Administration objecting to new federal leases, and voted to join the Local Government Outer Continental Shelf Coalition, which opposes offshore oil activity.
Supervisors Jimmy Paulding, Dawn Ortiz-Legg, and Bruce Gibson voted in favor, while Supervisors John Peschong and Heather Moreno voted against.
The action comes as the Trump Administration advances a new federal offshore leasing plan that could include up to six lease sales off the Northern, Central, and Southern California coasts between 2027 and 2030 potentially opening Central Coast waters to new drilling for the first time in decades.
“Our region has seen firsthand the environmental and economic devastation that can result from offshore oil development,” said Supervisor Jimmy Paulding, citing impacts from the Guadalupe Oil Field, Avila Beach contamination, and the 2015 Refugio oil spill.
The resolution reinforces existing County coastal protection policies and voter-approved measures, emphasizing tourism, fishing, recreation, and environmental stewardship as central to the local economy and identity.
