Capps Leads Charge to Protect California Coastline from Oil Drilling

Press Release

Today, Rep. Lois Capps (CA-24) led efforts against H.R. 4899, a bill that would expand offshore drilling nationwide and specifically require new drilling leasing off the coasts of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties.

The bill passed on a largely partisan vote. Similar legislation has been considered on the House floor every year since 2011, but has never advanced in the Senate.

Capps offered three amendments to the bill. One amendment would have required increased notification and transparency for coastal communities by requiring the Secretary of the Interior to notify all relevant state and local regulatory agencies and publish a notice in the Federal Register within 30 days after receiving any application for a permit that would allow the conduct of any offshore oil and gas well stimulation activities. This amendment failed on a vote of 183-227.

Her second amendment would have deleted the portion of the bill that targeted the Central Coast for additional drilling, while her third amendment would have required the Secretary of the Interior, along with the EPA, to conduct a study of the impacts of offshore oil and gas well stimulation activities, including offshore fracking, on our marine environment. The House Majority blocked these two amendments from reaching the House floor for a vote.

"This bill is yet another example of the House Majority's backward energy policy that doubles down on dirty fossil fuels instead of investing in a clean energy future," Capps said. "What's worse is that the bill forces drilling on communities by specifically targeting Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties for new leases, requiring new oil drilling lease sales off the Central Coast of California. This is the fourth time in as many years that House leadership has tried to override the will of my constituents and California voters who overwhelmingly oppose offshore drilling. It remains a bad idea and a waste of time."

In November, Capps, a member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, sent a letter to U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy calling for a moratorium on offshore fracking activities in federal waters off the coast of California until a comprehensive study is conducted to determine the impacts of fracking activities on the marine environment and public health.

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