United States Department of the Interior logo and U.S. flag are seen in this illustration taken April 23, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

By Nichola Groom

(Reuters) -President Donald Trump's administration on Thursday unveiled a plan for a dramatic expansion of oil and gas drilling rights auctions in U.S. waters, including in California, where state officials strongly oppose energy development along its world-famous coastline.

The Interior Department proposal is aligned with Trump's energy-dominance agenda to supercharge domestic fossil fuel production. It immediately set off a fresh conflict with California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who is among the president's harshest critics.

The plan contemplates 21 sales off the coast of Alaska starting next year, seven in the Gulf of Mexico and six in the Pacific Ocean from northern to southern California.

EASTERN GULF EYED FOR LEASING

The proposal also opens the door to future leasing in the eastern portion of the Gulf of Mexico, which has long been protected from energy development because it is used for military testing and training. Florida officials have opposed changes to that policy.

A schedule in the plan includes two potential lease sales there in 2029 and 2030, but also says the area was withdrawn from leasing consideration through 2032. The plan will allow the Interior Department to analyze the area for possible future leasing, according to the document.

Oil and gas leases in federal waters accounted for 14% of U.S. oil production and 2% of domestic natural gas production in fiscal 2024, according to federal data. The vast majority of that output is from leases in the Gulf of Mexico.

Production from leases in the Pacific accounts for just 0.1% of U.S. oil output, according to the Energy Information Administration.

The United States has not auctioned drilling rights for areas in the Pacific Ocean since 1984. California has among the most ambitious climate change policies in the world, and a 1969 oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara is credited with spawning landmark federal environmental policies.

"Trump's idiotic plan endangers our coastal economy and communities and hurts the well-being of Californians. This reckless attempt to sell out our coastline to his Big Oil donors is dead in the water," Newsom said in a statement.

PLAN WOULD REPLACE BIDEN-ERA SCHEDULE

If finalized, the Trump plan would replace a schedule set by the administration of former President Joe Biden that included just three lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico.

"By moving forward with the development of a robust, forward-thinking leasing plan, we are ensuring that America’s offshore industry stays strong, our workers stay employed, and our nation remains energy dominant for decades to come," Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement.

Federal waters typically start 3 nautical miles off the coast and extend about 200 nautical miles.

Oil and gas industry groups praised the plan.

"We commend Secretary Burgum and the Department of the Interior for taking this important step to fix a leasing program that was wholly insufficient," National Ocean Industries Association President Erik Milito said in a statement.

The Trump plan does not include any sales in the Atlantic Ocean. The Republican governor of South Carolina had asked for his state to be left out of the plan, as had the Democratic governor of North Carolina.

Conservation groups derided the proposal, saying it prioritized oil and gas companies over the environment.

"This draft plan is an oil spill nightmare!" Oceana campaign director Joseph Gordon said in a statement. "The last thing America needs now is a massive expansion of offshore drilling that could shut down our shores with catastrophic oil spills."

(Reporting by Nichola Groom in Los Angeles; Editing by Rod Nickel, Matthew Lewis and David Gregorio)