WASHINGTON – Representatives Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-07) and Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) today celebrated President Biden’s action to use his authority under 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to permanently ban offshore oil and gas drilling along the entire East coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, the Pacific off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California, and additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska.

“As his administration comes to a close, I’m grateful for the bold, transformative action President Biden has taken to chart a cleaner, safer energy future for all Americans,” said Rep. Grijalva. “The offshore oil and gas industry routinely subjects coastal communities and workers to toxic oil spills and pollution, all while the same communities are bearing the brunt of climate-caused storm surges and flooding. Although there is still work to be done, today’s action to block offshore drilling off the entire East Coast, the eastern Gulf, much of the Pacific, and the Northern Bering Sea is a monumental step in the progress we need to protect communities, the environment, and future generations from climate change.”

“For decades, I’ve fought to protect our shores from those who would sell off our way of life to make a buck from dangerous offshore drilling, and today, that fight has paid off,” said Rep. Pallone. “President Biden’s action ensures that our coasts are permanently off-limits to ‘drill baby, drill’ exploitation. This is a commonsense win for everyone who relies on clean, thriving oceans. Protecting our coastal waters from oil drilling safeguards our fishing and tourism economy and critically-endangered North Atlantic right whales.”

Background

On Nov. 15, 2024, then-Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Grijalva and Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Pallone led congressional Democrats on a letter urging President Biden to use the 12(a) authority to block offshore drilling in unleased and at-risk areas of the outer continental shelf. In their letter, the lawmakers pointed to a determination by the District Court for Alaska in 2017 that 12(a) does not give a president authority to revoke prior withdrawals. 

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