A federal district court judge dismissed legal claims made by Sable Offshore Corp. and ExxonMobil that the county’s denial of permits to Sable was an illegal taking of its property.
It builds on a series of uphill legal battles for Sable to pump oil at its Las Flores pipeline off the Santa Barbara Coast — an act that, while deeply opposed by local environmental groups, has been fully embraced by President Donald Trump.
In a win for Santa Barbara County on Tuesday, Chief U.S. District Court Judge Dolly Gee granted motions made by the county and the Environmental Defense Center, an intervenor in the case, to dismiss those legal claims made by Sable.
“This ruling reinforces that compliance with environmental laws and established regulatory processes is not optional,” said Tara Rengifo, senior attorney for the Defense Center. “Santa Barbara County’s policies are intended to protect the community from oil operators who do not comply with the law, and we remain committed to ensuring those protections are upheld.”
Under county law, Sable must have a permit to operate its onshore equipment, which include two fossil fuel processing stations and the pipeline responsible for the 2015 Refugio Oil Spill.
Sable did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Houston-based oil and gas company has continued to pump oil despite the county Board of Supervisors decision to deny Sable from taking over Exxon’s permits in December 2025.
Six months earlier, in May 2025, Sable and Exxon sued the county to force the transfer of permits.
Though the judge dismissed several legal claims because of insufficient claims of action, she ordered some of those claims to be dismissed “with leave to amend.” That means Sable could still bring back some of those claims with more sufficient claims of action.
The question now, according to Rengifo, is whether Sable will go that route.
“The next step is, do they get another chance,” Rengifo told the News-Press. “And do they get a second bite at the apple?”
