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The Los Angeles City Council launched a new offensive against urban oil drilling Tuesday, voting unanimously to advance a plan that would phase out wells across the city despite an expected legal challenge from the industry.
In a 14-0 vote, council members directed the city attorney to draft an ordinance that would prohibit new oil and gas extraction and classify existing drilling operations as nonconforming uses throughout the city.
Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, the driving force behind the measure, said changes in state law have cleared the way for Los Angeles to restrict oil drilling once and for all.
“It’s now unequivocal that cities have the authority to regulate, limit and prohibit oil and gas operations within our jurisdictions,” Yaroslavsky told colleagues before the vote.
She framed the issue as both a legal and public health matter, pointing to the number of residents living near active drilling sites.
“More than half a million Angelenos live within a quarter mile of an oil well, and we’re already paying the price,” she told The California Post after the vote. “The cost shows up in more kids with asthma, more seniors hooked up to oxygen tanks, and more pregnant women facing preterm labor because they happen to live near an oil rig.”
Yaroslavsky also took aim at the oil industry’s opposition to the phaseout effort.
“Oil companies would rather scare people about gas prices than answer for why their operations are making communities sick,” she said.
The move lands amid ongoing anxiety over California gas prices.
Industry groups have warned that restrictions on local oil production could further increase reliance on imported crude oil.
Los Angeles has more than 2,000 active oil wells, many located near homes, schools, parks and places of worship, according to city officials.
Tuesday’s action does not immediately shut down those wells.
Instead, it begins the process of adopting an ordinance that would prohibit new drilling and place existing operations on a path toward eventual phaseout.
The vote marks the city’s latest attempt to eliminate urban oil drilling.
In 2022, Los Angeles adopted an ordinance designed to phase out oil extraction citywide.
Oil companies, including Warren Resources, E&B Natural Resources Management Corp. and Hillcrest Beverly Oil Corp., challenged the measure in court.
The companies said the city had failed to adequately review the impacts of the ban. A Los Angeles Superior Court judge later ruled against the city, preventing the ordinance from taking effect.
Since then, state lawmakers have approved legislation aimed at giving local governments greater authority over oil and gas operations.
In 2024, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 3233, authored by Assemblymember Dawn Addis, which grants cities and counties broader authority to regulate, limit or prohibit oil and gas activities within their jurisdictions.
Yaroslavsky said the legislation provided a path for Los Angeles to revisit its drilling ban.
“Today Los Angeles is making a decision that aligns with our need to turn the page on urban oil drilling,” she said. “The absence of an enforceable oil ordinance has had real consequences for our communities.”
She also acknowledged the city could face another legal challenge as it moves forward.
“The work, of course, does not end here,” Yaroslavsky said. “There are other tools available to help reach our shared goal of eliminating urban oil drilling from our communities, and I’m committed to using them.”
The council also approved environmental findings associated with the proposal and directed the city attorney to prepare the ordinance for future consideration.
According to city planning documents, the ordinance would prohibit new oil and gas extraction throughout Los Angeles and classify existing extraction activities as nonconforming uses in all zones.
Councilwoman Traci Park was absent during Tuesday’s vote.
The ordinance is expected to return to the council later this summer for a final vote.
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