Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Rule Changes

Processing lease buybacks and permit remands after courts blocked its December 2025 suspension orders

Federal judges cleared all five East Coast offshore wind projects to resume construction by February 2, 2026, finding the Trump administration had not justified its national security suspensions. The five projects total about 5.8 gigawatts. Vineyard Wind and Revolution Wind are now fully built and sending power; Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind is more than 80% complete.

Updated Oct 23

Rule Changes

As of May 2026: Runs offshore oil, gas and wind leasing; implementing Trump’s mandated Gulf auctions

Donald Trump's second-term energy agenda has moved from a single Gulf auction to a full-scale offshore transformation. The December 10 Gulf lease sale—81.2 million acres at a 12.5% royalty rate, generating $279.4 million—was just the opening move. By year's end, the administration had proposed a sweeping 2026-2031 leasing plan covering 1.27 billion acres off California, Florida and Alaska, and scheduled a second Gulf sale for March 11, 2026. It simultaneously halted all five major East Coast offshore wind projects, citing national security risks; Shell-INEOS's early January oil discovery south of New Orleans showed the industry's bet on deepwater Gulf prospects.

Updated May 10