SB1137 was passed in 2022 and fully enacted in 2024. It now faces multiple legal challenges
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A long-simmering clash between California lawmakers and oil and gas interests is escalating again, as mineral rights holders filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn a state law that restricts drilling near homes, schools and hospitals.
The lawsuit targets Senate Bill 1137, a measure passed by the Legislature in 2022 and fully implemented in 2024. The law establishes so-called health protection zones, prohibiting new oil and gas wells within roughly 3,200 feet of sensitive sites such as residences, schools and health care facilities.
Supporters of the law say the buffer zones are necessary to protect public health from pollution linked to drilling operations. Opponents argue the restrictions amount to an unconstitutional taking of private property.
Advocates for mineral rights holders say the law disproportionately harms private citizens who own subsurface mineral rights, an estimated 600,000 Californians statewide.
“For many of them, SB 1137 wipes out income they depend on for mortgages, medical needs and sustaining family farms and small businesses,” said Ed Hazard, president of the National Association of Royalty Owners–California.
The lawsuit was filed by a family that says the law violates generations-old property rights by effectively preventing them from accessing those minerals. The legal challenge follows a separate complaint filed earlier this month by the Trump administration, which also argues the law unlawfully restricts energy development.
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