The Trump administration has proposed expanding offshore oil drilling in the Eastern Gulf near Florida's coast, drawing strong opposition from key state Republicans. Governor Ron DeSantis and Senators Rick Scott and Ashley Moody are urging the administration to maintain a 2020 moratorium on offshore leasing off Florida and nearby states, citing risks to tourism, the environment, and military operations.
The Trump administration unveiled a new plan last week to ramp up offshore drilling off the coasts of Alaska, California, and Florida as the president seeks to boost U.S. energy production.
According to the Daily Wire, the U.S. Department of the Interior directed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management last Thursday to open seven additional lease areas in the Eastern Gulf for offshore drilling, in waters around 100 miles off Florida's coast. The administration also plans to open 21 areas for lease off Alaska and six areas off the Pacific coast, a move officials have framed as a response to what they describe as restrictive oil and gas policies under former President Joe Biden.
Florida Republicans, including Governor Ron DeSantis, Sen. Rick Scott, and Sen. Ashley Moody, have urged the administration to slow or reconsider the proposed expansion. They want federal officials to stick with a policy that Trump enacted during his first term, which banned offshore oil leasing off the coasts of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina through 2032 under a 2020 presidential memorandum.
“President Trump’s 2020 memorandum protecting Florida’s eastern Gulf waters represents a thoughtful approach to the issue. The Interior Department should not depart from the 2020 policy,” DeSantis said in a recent statement, as reported by the Daily Wire. The governor’s office added that Florida’s Gulf coast does “not have the same oil and gas reserves as other states in the region” and that the state already “has active sites where drilling occurs on land.”
Florida politicians opposing the leases argue that drilling threatens the state’s beaches, which attract millions of tourists each year, and could interfere with what they describe as “critical” U.S. military bases along the coast.
Scott, Florida’s senior senator and a former governor, echoed DeSantis’s concerns. “Florida’s beautiful beaches and coastal waters are so important to our state’s economy, environment, and military community, which is why I have fought for years to keep drilling off Florida’s coasts and worked closely with President Trump during his first term to extend the moratorium banning oil drilling off Florida’s coasts through 2032,” Scott said in a statement cited by the Daily Wire.
“I have been speaking to Secretary Burgum and made my expectations clear that this moratorium must remain in place, and that in any plan, Florida’s coasts must remain off the table for oil drilling to protect Florida’s tourism, environment, and military training opportunities,” Scott added.
Sen. Ashley Moody described the administration’s move as “HIGHLY concerning” and said she “will be engaging directly with the [Interior Department] on this issue,” according to the same report.
A group of Florida Republican House members, including some of Trump’s most loyal allies in Congress, also signed a letter urging the president to reconsider the Interior Department’s directive. While expressing support for broader American energy independence, the lawmakers warned that the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range is “critical to advanced weapons development, flight testing, and joint exercises essential to maintaining America’s military superiority,” and said drilling nearby could jeopardize those activities.
The Interior Department’s push to free up more areas for offshore drilling is being cast by the administration as part of a broader effort to reverse what it calls Biden-era limits on leasing. “Offshore oil and gas production does not happen overnight. It takes years of planning, investment, and hard work before barrels reach the market,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said.
“The Biden administration slammed the brakes on offshore oil and gas leasing and crippled the long-term pipeline of America’s offshore production. 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,” Burgum added.
Trump’s 2020 memorandum prevented designated areas off the Florida coast from being considered for “leasing for purposes of exploration, development, or production” until 2032. The decision drew criticism at the time from some observers who argued the move was aimed at bolstering his standing with Florida voters ahead of the 2020 election.
During his 2024 presidential campaign and after returning to the White House in early 2025, Trump repeatedly pledged to expand American fossil fuel production and reduce energy costs, adopting the slogan “drill, baby, drill.” On his first day back in office in January, he declared a national energy emergency and has since argued that increasing domestic oil and gas output is central to lowering energy prices and combating inflation.