Santa Barbara County Supervisors deny transfer of permits to Sable Offshore

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— In a 4 to 1 vote, Santa Barbara County Supervisors deny the transfer of permits from Exxon Mobil to Sable Offshore.

 “Since February my concerns have only grown on the resources front. my concerns on the skills due to the many violations have been discussed. has grown,” said Supervisor Laura Capps.

The first time this came up for a vote in February it was 2-2, with Supervisor Joan Hartmann recusing herself.

But a judge ruled Hartmann is eligible to vote on it— one of the factors that broke the tie. 

“We as a county have a duty as local government to protect the public health, safety, and safeguard the county’s natural resources. That’s what local government does,” said  Supervisor Joan Hartmann.

It was a packed house Tuesday and the divide was palpable— with Sable workers sitting on one side of the room and opponents on the other.

The permits are part of Sable's plan to use the pipeline that ruptured during the 2015 Refugio Oil Spill.

“We're really worried about transferring the permits to Sable because it's a startup oil startup oil company, It's their only asset if they have a spill or it's not cost effective for them to continue, they'll go bankrupt and the taxpayers will be on the hook for the costs of the spill or for abandonment of the facility,” said Sierra Club Legal Chair Katie Davis.

Environmentalists claim Sable is not a responsible operator and would not be able to afford an oil spill.

Sable claims otherwise.

“We have done everything other than place our confidential insurance into the public record and we remain willing to do that. There is no issue with our insurance that would affect the county’s recovery.”

 Supervisor Bob Nelson was the single vote in favor of Sable calling the hearing “political theater.”

“A far greater environmental damage was done by one of our local sanitation districts, which dumped 7 times the amount of sewage in the pacific ocean than what was released in the gaviota oil spill. it’s interesting how some will pick and choose their outrage,” said Supervisor Nelson.

Supervisor Steve Lavagnino previously voted in favor of Sable, but changed his mind.

“There is something wrong with the strategy of Sable’s leadership. Trying to simply bulldoze through the permitting process has not been help. and is not how we expect businesses in sb county to conduct themselves,” said Supervisor Lavagnino.

This vote came as Sable was telling investors it’s shifting its focus away from the onshore pipelines.

Sable is now pursuing an offshore vessel to move oil, bypassing state and local regulators.

If Sable goes with that plan, it aims to restart sales by the end of 2026.

Getting there would require significant new investments.

We reached out to Sable for an interview but they declined to speak with us.