Los Angeles Council Votes 13-0 to Ban Oil Drilling, Phasing Out City Wells Within 20 Years

The Los Angeles City Council voted 13-0 on October 28 to adopt an oil and gas ordinance banning new drilling citywide and phasing out existing operations within 20 years. Under council documents, existing oil and gas activities become a nonconforming use in all zones and may not expand or intensify, except where the city authorizes well maintenance, well servicing or health and safety exceptions; a separate review process would allow such work only to prevent, respond to or end credible threats to public health, safety or the environment. The measure now goes to Mayor Karen Bass for her consideration, and her office told a Los Angeles Times reporter she intends to sign it as soon as possible.

More than 600 active and 1,200 idle wells

According to Communities for a Better Environment, the ordinance covers more than 600 active and 1,200 idle oil wells across Los Angeles, making it the largest city in the United States to phase out oil drilling within its limits. City officials say many wells sit in plain sight near homes, schools, parks and places of worship, and residents living near drill sites face higher risks of childhood asthma, preterm labor and respiratory illness.

A decade of campaigning and the earlier ban's defeat

This is the council's second attempt at a ban: its 2022 ordinance was challenged by oil companies and struck down by a court in 2024 on the grounds that it was preempted by state law. California subsequently passed AB 3233, affirming that cities and counties may regulate, limit or prohibit oil and gas operations, and the council directed the Planning Department in January 2025 to draft a new ordinance. Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, who led the effort, thanked the STAND-LA coalition for 14 years of campaigning and acknowledged the city is likely to be sued again, while saying staff worked hard to ensure the measure's legality. She singled out one of the ordinance's findings: that a core principle of zoning in Los Angeles is to protect residents' health, safety and welfare by reducing incompatible adjacent land uses.

What happens next: signature and litigation risk

Councilmember Traci Park said the debate over whether oil and gas wells belong in residential communities is long over, adding that Los Angeles has already committed to transitioning to 100 percent clean electricity by 2035, so stopping new drilling and phasing out existing operations follows naturally. The 20-year phaseout also means residents living near wells will continue to face health and safety risks for some time, and oil companies have previously warned the ordinance could raise constitutional property-protection questions and expose taxpayers to costly litigation. Whether the ordinance survives a fresh round of legal challenges after the mayor signs it will be the next key test.