Should Trump refund fees for wind energy leases offshore of Morro Bay?

April 12, 2026

By KAREN VELIE

San Luis Obispo County attorney Saro Rizzo on April 2 asked the federal government to pursue lease refund agreements with the five companies currently holding offshore wind leases in California, three of which are off the coast of Morro Bay.

In 2022, the federal government auctioned off three offshore wind energy sites located between 20 and 30 miles off the coast near Morro Bay for more than $400 million. Locals then formed REACT Alliance, a nonprofit with a mission to protect California’s Central Coast from the “destructive impacts of offshore wind energy development.”

In Dec. 2025, based on national security concerns, the Trump administration suspended leases of all off-shore wind farms currently under construction in the United States. Since then, many wind energy projects have stalled or ended.

On March 23, TotalEnergies signed agreements with the U.S. Department of the Interior to relinquish two offshore wind leases — Carolina Long Bay and New York Bight — in exchange for a refund of over $928 million. The company will shift to investing in U.S. natural gas and power projects.

On behalf of REACT Alliance, Rizzo is asking the U.S, Department of the Interior to pursue settlement agreements with the five companies currently holding offshore wind leases in California. The five offshore wind leases auctioned off the coast of California in 2022 fetched a total of $757.1 million in winning bids and encompassed a combined 373,268 acres of ocean space.

Rizzo’s letter to the U.S. Department of the Interior:

“Dear Secretary Burgum,

“On behalf of the REACT Alliance, I strongly urge the Department of the Interior to pursue settlement agreements with the five companies currently holding offshore wind leases in California. We believe a “lease-for-refund” arrangement—similar to your recent landmark deal with TotalEnergies—is the most prudent path forward. In that agreement, TotalEnergies renounced its U.S. offshore wind development in exchange for the reimbursement of approximately $928 million in lease fees, redirected toward reliable domestic energy production.

As an organization dedicated to protecting California’s marine ecosystems from industrial-scale energy development, we believe this is the most prudent path for the following reasons:

● Financial & Technical Insolvency: The five leases auctioned in Dec. 2022 totaled $757.1 million in winning bids. Yet, the technology for floating turbines in these deep waters does not currently exist. Essential port infrastructure remains unbuilt, unfunded, and unplanned.

● Lack of Progress: To date, none of the lessees have submitted Site Assessment Plans (SAP) or Construction and Operations Plans (COP). These projects are speculative at best; industry and state agency projections admit they will not be operational until at least 2035.

● Environmental and Cultural Risk: These unproven, massive structures threaten critical migratory paths and the delicate balance of our coastal ecology. They risk permanent harm to the aesthetic and cultural value of the California coastline—a cornerstone of our regional economy.

“We share your view that offshore wind is an expensive, unreliable, and subsidy-dependent scheme. Forcing American ratepayers to shoulder the immense costs of this “impractical solution” offers no immediate benefit. Redirecting the capital currently tied up in these leases toward reliable, domestic energy production—as TotalEnergies has committed to doing—is in the best interest of American families.

“By negotiating an exit for developers in the Morro Bay and Humboldt lease areas now, you can prevent decades of environmental degradation and financial waste. We request the opportunity to discuss how the REACT Alliance can support the Department in securing a future for the California coast that prioritizes genuine conservation and energy dominance over the ineffective economic boondoggle known as floating offshore wind.”

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