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California Threatens Lawsuit Over Trump Administration Offshore Wind Buyout Deal

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California moved to challenge a federal offshore wind buyout agreement that redirects $120 million and could delay the state's clean-energy plans, officials said Tuesday.

Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild sent a Notice of Intent to Sue the US Department of the Interior and Golden State Wind, arguing that a lease-termination deal unlawfully threatens offshore wind development in California.

Under the agreement, the Interior Department would pay Golden State Wind $120 million to surrender its offshore wind lease off California's Central Coast and require the company to invest an equivalent amount in out-of-state fossil-fuel projects, according to California officials.

The state alleges the agreement violates the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act by bypassing protections that give California a role in offshore wind leasing decisions. The notice gives the parties 60 days to address the alleged violations before litigation begins.

Bonta said the Trump Administration is using taxpayer money to eliminate clean-energy projects, while California intends to defend investments that support jobs, economic growth, and renewable energy development.

California's offshore wind strategy targets 25 gigawatts of capacity by 2045, enough to supply electricity to roughly 25 million homes and provide about 13% of the state's power needs, officials said.

Golden State Wind paid $120 million in a competitive 2022 auction for rights to develop a 2-gigawatt project in the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area and committed more than $30 million for workforce training, supply-chain development, and community programs, according to the state.

The Interior Department announced on April 27, 2026, that it would cancel the lease under a settlement agreement tied to litigation that California says Golden State Wind never filed and that federal agencies never faced.

California said it has invested more than $100 million in ports, transmission planning, and related infrastructure to support offshore wind development and warned that those investments, along with union jobs and economic benefits, could be jeopardized if projects are abandoned.

Separately, the California Energy Commission issued investigative subpoenas to Golden State Wind in May and to Invenergy on June 23. According to the Interior Department, Invenergy agreed to relinquish four offshore wind leases, including a 2-gigawatt Morro Bay project, in exchange for a $765 million federal payment and a matching investment in US natural gas and geothermal projects.

California said offshore wind buyouts approved by the Trump Administration now total nearly $2.6 billion nationwide and pledged to review investigative findings to protect public investments and the state's clean-energy objectives.

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