An offshore oil platform in the Santa Barbara Channel.
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Marli Miller
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Universal Images Group via Getty Images
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Topline:
The Trump administration invoked emergency powers under the Defense Production Act Friday, ordering the restart of the Santa Ynez offshore oil platform and pipeline along the Santa Barbara County coast that was shuttered after a spill released thousands of barrels of crude into the Pacific 11 years ago. The move, which comes in response to skyrocketing fuel prices in the wake of the Iran conflict, brought an immediate threat to sue by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Why it matters: The order also marks the most aggressive federal intervention yet in a yearslong dispute. On one side is the Trump administration and Sable Offshore Corp., a Houston-based startup that has been trying to restart the pipeline. On the other are California officials and environmental groups who oppose the effort.
The backstory: Sable, which bought the system from ExxonMobil in 2024, has told investors that production could increase from about 30,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to more than 50,000 if the system restarts, sending oil to refineries in Los Angeles, Bakersfield and the Bay Area. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday evening. The ruptured pipeline released crude oil onto beaches north of Goleta in May 2015, killing hundreds of birds and marine mammals and triggering one of the worst California coastal oil spills in decades.
Read on... for more about this pipeline.
The Trump administration invoked emergency powers under the Defense Production Act Friday, ordering the restart of the Santa Ynez offshore oil platform and pipeline along the Santa Barbara County coast that was shuttered after a spill released thousands of barrels of crude into the Pacific 11 years ago.
The move, which comes in response to skyrocketing fuel prices in the wake of the Iran conflict, brought an immediate threat to sue by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The order also marks the most aggressive federal intervention yet in a yearslong dispute. On one side is the Trump administration and Sable Offshore Corp., a Houston-based startup that has been trying to restart the pipeline. On the other are California officials and environmental groups who oppose the effort.
Sable, which bought the system from ExxonMobil in 2024, has told investors that production could increase from about 30,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to more than 50,000 if the system restarts, sending oil to refineries in Los Angeles, Bakersfield and the Bay Area. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday evening.
The ruptured pipeline released crude oil onto beaches north of Goleta in May 2015, killing hundreds of birds and marine mammals and triggering one of the worst California coastal oil spills in decades.
Sable was blocked from restarting operations by court orders requiring approval from California regulators — a requirement the Trump administration has tried to override.
On Friday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement that the Trump Administration “remains committed to putting all Americans and their energy security first. Today’s order will strengthen America’s oil supply and restore a pipeline system vital to our national security and defense, ensuring that West Coast military installations have the reliable energy critical to military readiness.”
Newsom said, however, that California will sue the Trump administration over the move.
“Donald Trump started a war, admitted it would spike gas prices nationwide, and told Americans it was a small price to pay,” Newsom said. “Now he's using this crisis of his own making to attempt what he’s wanted to do for years: open California’s coast for his oil industry friends so they can poison our beaches.”
“The Trump administration and Sable are defying multiple court orders, and we will see them back in court,” Newsom said.
The Energy Department did not immediately provide CalMatters with a copy of the order. A March 3 legal opinion from the Justice Department concluded that a federal order under the Defense Production Act of 1950 could preempt state law in the Sable case. It also said such an order could override a 2020 federal consent decree stemming from the 2015 Refugio spill that requires approval from the California State Fire Marshal before the pipeline can restart.
Earlier Friday, the White House issued an executive order expanding and clarifying the energy secretary’s authority to act under the Defense Production Act.
Environmental groups challenging the legality of Sable’s plans condemned the move.
“This is a revolting power grab by an extremist president,” said Talia Nimmer, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, which has challenged the pipeline restart in state and federal court. “Trump is misusing this Cold War-era law just to help a Texas oil company skirt vital state laws that protect our coastline, and Californians will pay the price.”
Nimmer said forcing the pipelines to restart would not lower gasoline prices but would expose coastal wildlife to the risk of another spill. Allowing the federal government to override state law so an oil company can restart the pipelines, she said, would set a dangerous precedent. The Trump administration has long sought to expand offshore oil leasing along the West Coast, which has drawn fierce opposition in California.
In December, federal officials sought to shift authority over the pipeline from California regulators to Washington when the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration ruled that the infrastructure qualifies as an interstate pipeline. It issued an emergency permit approving a restart plan.
Environmental groups and the state of California challenged that move and are awaiting a ruling in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
A representative for Attorney General Rob Bonta could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday. After the Justice Department released its memo outlining the legal basis for the move, Bonta spokesperson Christine Lee said the state was reviewing that development.
“The Trump Administration’s desire to put oil and gas interests over our communities and a clean environment continues unabated,” Lee said, on Tuesday. “We are reviewing this development and cannot comment on legal strategy.”
Last month, a Santa Barbara County Superior Court judge ordered the pipeline to remain shut down, ruling that the Trump administration’s earlier intervention was not enough to override an injunction requiring Sable to obtain state approvals before restarting.
Highs in the 90s and 100s will be with us all week
Matthew Ballinger
is the senior editor for climate and environment coverage at LAist.
Published March 16, 2026 10:36 AM
This heat wave will be with us for a while: the highest temperatures will be Tuesday through Friday.
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National Weather Service
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Topline:
A rare March heat wave is pushing temperatures 20 to 35 degrees above normal — from Big Sur all the way to San Diego. The National Weather Service is warning Californians to take precautions, such as avoiding strenuous activity in the hottest hours of the day, to prevent heat illness.
Why now: The heat wave is here, and the hottest weather is forecast for Tuesday through Friday. At the beaches, temperatures will approach or exceed 90 degrees, according to the latest National Weather Service. Inland, expect high 90s or even low 100s.
Heat warnings and advisories
Heat warnings and advisories will be in effect at least through Friday for much of California.
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National Weather Service
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Orange and San Diego counties are under heat advisories or extreme heat watches through Friday.
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National Weather Service
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Why it matters: Extreme temperatures can cause heat exhaustion and heat stroke, which can be deadly. If a person becomes confused, dizzy or loses consciousness, it's time to call 911. This rare March heat event could also break temperature records.
What to do:Stay as cool as you can — seek out air conditioning, wear loose-fitting clothing and avoid strenuous activity in the heat of the day. Stay hydrated, as well: drink lots of water, and avoid caffeine and alcohol.
Make plans now to prevent heat illness.
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National Weather Service
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What's next: We'll have to wait for the weekend for relief. Expect slight cooling Saturday, and then noticeably cooler weather on Sunday.
Food and miscellaneous flea market vendors at the El Salvador Corridor along Vermont Ave. at 12th St. in the Pico Union neighborhood.
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Gary Coronado
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The LA Local
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Topline:
Even with fears of immigration raids and falling sales, vendors in the El Salvador Corridor say they feel safer working together in a large group.
The backstory: The corridor, especially the sidewalk along Vermont Avenue where most vendors set up tents, serves a mix of local residents and visitors who come specifically for lunch, drawn by pupusas, raspados, fruit, and other goods. In early November, federal agents carried out a major immigration raid, detaining several vendors and prompting others to quickly pack up and flee. Videos shared on social media showed people abandoning their stands as officers moved through the streets. The disruption, vendors say, continues to hang over the street and hurts business.
One example: Maria Godoy, one of the vendors of the corridor, said vendors have relied on a WhatsApp group text maintained by the Koreatown chapter of the LA Tenants Union’s Koreatown and the rapid response group Union del Barrio. The messaging services comes alive when there is ICE activity to warn people in the community.
Read on... for more about how street vendors on this corridor are working together.
Like many vendors along the El Salvador Corridor in Pico Union, Maria Godoy sells goods alongside others on the sidewalk of Vermont Avenue between 11th and 12th streets. Being together offers some sense of solidarity, she said, but fear still lingers.
“With the other vendors, I feel more supported because we’re all together, but there’s also fear that at any moment ICE could come bother us,” Godoy said. “They might come back, so we’re always on alert.”
Some vendors have their papers — permanent resident cards — while others are undocumented. Whatever their status, the vendors are worried about the next immigration sweep that could come through their corner of the world.
Godoy said vendors have relied on a WhatsApp group text maintained by the Koreatown chapter of the LA Tenants Union’s Koreatown and the rapid response group Union del Barrio. The messaging services comes alive when there is ICE activity to warn people in the community.
The corridor, especially the sidewalk along Vermont Avenue where most vendors set up tents, serves a mix of local residents and visitors who come specifically for lunch, drawn by pupusas, raspados, fruit, and other goods.
In early November, federal agents carried out a major immigration raid, detaining several vendors and prompting others to quickly pack up and flee. Videos shared on social media showed people abandoning their stands as officers moved through the streets.
The disruption, vendors say, continues to hang over the street and hurts business.
Street vendor Beatriz arrived in Los Angeles from El Salvador. She sells a variety of fruits and vegetables, including strawberries, mangoes, and pineapples, along 12th street and Vermont Avenue also known as the El Salvador Corridor.
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Marina Peña
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The LA Local
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For more than a decade, Godoy has sold vitamins, cold medicines and arthritis creams along the corridor, many of them products from Mexico and Central America that are hard to find elsewhere in Los Angeles.
But the 52‑year‑old vendor said business has sharply declined in recent months. Her sales, she estimates, have dropped about 60 percent since August.
“The situation is really bad. The economy has gone down a lot and for those of us who run small businesses, sales have dropped just too much. We used to have a lot of tourists who would come, but not anymore,” Godoy said. “This is all we have to survive. We have to pay rent, bills, we always pay taxes, and now we’re not making enough to pay those taxes. Now we’re working and just able to cover the rent.”
The cost of buying items has also increased, Godoy said, but in the current economy she can’t pass those additional costs on to customers.
“People get used to the prices and they notice when something goes up, so we can’t always charge them more because they won’t buy it,” she said.
The only products for which her sales have remained steady are cold and flu medicines.
Another woman, who The LA Local is not naming because she is undocumented, arrived in Los Angeles about a year and a half ago from El Salvador. The single mother began selling fruit along the corridor in December and the possibility of an immigration raid affects her daily work, she said.
She explained how vendors have organized themselves to protect one another.
“Among ourselves, vendors, we are taking care of each other. We have made ways to protect ourselves. If we see something, we warn each other. If something happens, we’re ready to get together and link arms so that if they take one, they take all of us. If they see a van, someone already warns,” she said.
She sells mangoes, strawberries, pineapples, oranges, mandarins, coconuts, tomatoes and honey — items locals continue to seek out, especially in warm weather — but like Godoy, she said that “sales are slow because people are afraid to go out.”
Lorena Lopez, another vendor, sells ceviche made with clams, shrimp, and octopus along the corridor. Before that, the 45-year-old sold pupusas and yuca. She has been working there since 2013 and said that having many vendors around has both upsides and drawbacks.
The El Salvador Corridor along Vermont Ave. in the Pico Union neighborhood on Monday, Nov. 10, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.
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Gary Coronado
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The LA Local
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“If I feel like people are looking out for me, I really feel at ease. It helps a lot and makes me feel safer,” Lopez said. “When there aren’t many vendors here, there are fewer customers. It feels better when more vendors are around, watching out for each other. But at the same time, with more of us here, there’s more competition for customers.”
To help small businesses recover from the economic impact, Los Angeles County started the Small Business Resiliency Fund. The program, run by the Department of Economic Opportunity, gives up to $5,000 in direct financial help to businesses affected by immigration enforcement, covering rent, payroll, and other expenses.
They have already distributed more than $5.1 million in grants to 1,239 small businesses affected by immigration enforcement. The businesses range from storefronts to home-based businesses and sidewalk vendors.
The vendors The LA Local spoke to said they haven’t yet applied for these funds.
Still, with sales down, Godoy said many vendors like her are hoping for support that matches their needs on the ground.
“We would need help with direct resources because right now we’re stuck in the same place with no sales,” she said. “We can’t get a storefront because there aren’t enough sales, so we’re out here on the street. I think people lack empathy and at the same time they’re afraid, and the economy is also bad. When gas goes up, everything goes up.”
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The Academy Awards were last night in Hollywood, hosted by Conan O'Brien. The stars walked the red carpet in a wide range of styles.
Keep reading... to check out the gowns, suits and jewels chosen by stars.
The Academy Awards were Sunday night in Hollywood, hosted by Conan O'Brien.
One Battle After Another took home best picture, in addition to awards for Paul Thomas Anderson for best director and best adapted screenplay. Sinners star Michael B. Jordan won best actor, and Hamnet's Jessie Buckley won best actress.
Michael B. Jordan
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Amy Madigan
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Kate Hudson
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Wunmi Mosaku
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Ethan Hawke
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Chloé Zhao
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Emma Stone
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Delroy Lindo
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Jessie Buckley
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Benicio del Toro
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Renate Reinsve
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Leonardo DiCaprio
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Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas
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Wagner Moura
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Raphael Saadiq
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EJAE
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Timothée Chalamet
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Danielle Brooks
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Liza Powel O'Brien (left) and Conan O'Brien (right)
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Demi Moore
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Jeremy Pope
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Zoe Saldaña
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Catherine Shepherd (left) and Brandi Carlile (right)
Last night's Oscars ceremony was expected to be a showdown between the vampires and the revolutionaries, between Sinners and One Battle After Another.
And the Oscars went to... In the end, One Battle After Another won both best picture and best director, but it was a very good night for Sinners, too, including an original screenplay award for writer and director Ryan Coogler.
Keep reading... for more on some of the evening's most notable moments.
As Sunday's Oscars ceremony approached, it seemed to be shaping up to be a showdown between the vampires and the revolutionaries, between Sinners and One Battle After Another. In the end, One Battle After Another won both best picture and best director, but it was a very good night for Sinners, too, including an original screenplay award for writer and director Ryan Coogler.
There were some surprises over the course of the evening, including a rare tie in the live action short category, a remembrance of Robert Redford that included Barbra Streisand singing a bit of "The Way We Were," and Jimmy Kimmel stepping in just long enough to make some pointed comments about media censorship. But let's go over some of the major takeaways.
A celebrated director gets his Oscar.
Paul Thomas Anderson won best director for One Battle After Another after three previous nominations for There Will Be Blood, Phantom Thread and Licorice Pizza. Anderson had already won several major Oscar precursor awards this year, including top directing prizes at the BAFTAs and from the Directors Guild of America, so he was the odds-on favorite. The other nominees in the category were relative newcomers: Ryan Coogler, Josh Safdie and Joachim Trier were all first-time directing nominees; Chloé Zhao was nominated (and won) for Nomadland at the ceremony in 2021.
Michael B. Jordan won a rare acting award for a genre movie.
Michael B. Jordan won best actor for his portrayal of twin brothers in "Sinners."
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Sinners is a drama, but it's also very much a genre film. It's horror. It's vampires. Those are not the kinds of films that most often win Oscars for actors. But Jordan, with his first nomination, won over performers from much more traditionally awards-friendly films. Three of those actors (Leonardo DiCaprio, Timothée Chalamet and Ethan Hawke) already had multiple acting nominations before this year.
The last actor to win for a genre film might have been Joaquin Phoenix for Joker, since that was technically a comic-book movie, but that one did away with most of its genre trappings and pressed itself into a dramatic mold, which Sinners emphatically does not. Before that, while definitions of genre aren't bright lines, you might have to go all the way back to ... Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs, if you consider that horror? Maybe even further? At any rate, it's a great win for an actor who has been beloved at least since The Wire almost 25 years ago, who's been doing rich and varied work ever since. His victory is also a win for his lengthy and fruitful collaboration with Ryan Coogler in Sinners, but also in Fruitvale Station, Creed and Black Panther.
Amy Madigan, the award-winning straight-up monster.
Amy Madigan won best supporting actress for her performance in "Weapons."
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(We don't mean Amy Madigan the person, of course.) Madigan won best supporting actress for her deeply unsettling and entirely singular performance as Aunt Gladys in Weapons, which is even more fully a horror movie than Sinners. While the nominated cast members from Sinners — Jordan, Delroy Lindo and Wunmi Mosaku — play regular people who are swept into an unreal situation, Madigan is playing, essentially, the boogeyman (boogeywoman?). It's thrilling to see the Academy recognize a performance that is as weird and funny and scary as just the last few minutes of what Madigan does in Zach Cregger's terrifying story of a town that sees a whole classroom full of its children disappear.
The casting Oscar makes its debut.
Cassandra Kulukundis won the Academy's first award for achievement in casting for her work on "One Battle After Another".
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This was the first year that there was an Oscar for casting, which is very much overdue — there have been casting Emmys for ages. It was easy to argue for any of the nominated casting directors. Marty Supreme and The Secret Agent both deploy nontraditional actors in some roles, Sinners and One Battle both use a wide variety of well-known and well-regarded stars in interesting ways, and Hamnet places most of the weight of an enormously heavy story on the shoulders of just a couple of performers, including best actress winner Jessie Buckley.
Cassandra Kulukundis, who won for One Battle After Another, not only has been working with Paul Thomas Anderson for ages, but she also worked on casting (get this) for both The Brutalist and Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle. But all the nominees have tremendous resumes. Francine Maisler, who was nominated for Sinners, was the credited casting director for Arrival, Creed, Baby Driver, Widows, and Challengers! Honestly, the biggest problem in the category was that everybody couldn't win.
A first in the cinematography category.
Autumn Durald Arkapaw accepts the award for best cinematography for "Sinners."
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AFP via Getty Images
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Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who won best cinematography for her work on Sinners, was only the fourth woman, and the first woman of color, to be nominated in the category. She becomes the first woman to win. Sinners is a sumptuously, inventively, beautifully shot film, and the cinematography is one of the core crafts that makes it so effective.
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