May 8, 2026 - Santa Barbara, CA – U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Congressman Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.-24) joined local Central Coast environmental leaders to rally against the Trump Administration’s attempt to restart offshore oil platforms owned by Sable Offshore Corporation, which uses the same infrastructure that caused the disastrous oil spill off Refugio State Beach in 2015. Schiff raised the alarm on the impacts of the Refugio spill which caused devastation on marine ecosystems and coastal communities as well as extensive costs for environmental clean-up.  

During the press conference, Schiff emphasized that allowing Sable Offshore Corporation, which has blatantly disobeyed directives from California agencies that are required for offshore oil and pipeline operations, to continue forward with this plan has the potential for extreme devastation. He also highlighted the work he’s doing in the Senate to preserve and protect California’s coastlines and ecosystems. 

“It’s just a thrill to breathe in the ocean air, to enjoy this incredible beauty around us, and to think that it is now being threatened again by reopening this damaged pipeline. That caused such damage in 2015, resulting in $22 million of losses, but more importantly, the loss of marine life, the loss of the coastal economy here, the injury to small businesses. And for what are we going to risk that,” said Senator Schiff.  

“This is really a national issue. And I think moving off of fossil fuels and moving to renewable sources of energy is an environmental imperative. It is a health imperative. It’s an economic imperative. It is a national security imperative,” the Senator continued. 

Background:  

Senator Schiff has been a strong opponent of restarting oil drilling off the California coast and has advocated for renewable energy sources to strengthen environmental protections. He published an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times strongly opposing Sable Offshore Corporation’s attempts to restart oil drilling operations. Additionally, Schiff and Rep. Carbajal wrote to Governor Gavin Newsom raising concerns about the potential restart of offshore oil drilling operations along California’s Gaviota Coast by Sable Offshore Corp, and demanded answers from the Trump administration on its involvement in Sable Offshore Corporation’s attempts to restart offshore oil drilling using the same pipelines that caused the Refugio State Beach oil spill of 2015. 

Source: Senator Adam Schiff