🛑 Officials warn that proposed oil drilling in the Eastern Gulf could threaten national security by interfering with missions at the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range.
💰 Local economy at risk as Eglin Air Force Base supports roughly 70% of Northwest Florida’s economy and nearly 200,000 jobs.
🌊 Environmental and tourism concerns grow, with drilling potentially harming the Gulf Coast’s waters, beaches, and visitor confidence.
NICEVILLE — State Sen. Don Gaetz (R-Niceville) said proposed federal plans to open parts of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico to oil drilling would endanger U.S. national defense and upend Northwest Florida’s military-driven economy, calling on President Donald Trump to remove the parcels from an upcoming offshore lease sale.
“There can’t be a balance,” Gaetz said in an interview with Mid Bay News on Monday. “The military mission can’t be balanced against other considerations, because the military mission is paramount.”
Gaetz said drilling near the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range — a sprawling military operations area used for weapons testing and pilot training — could force the Air Force and other branches to relocate missions that cannot be duplicated anywhere else in the United States.
“This is the only place where the kind of testing and training that’s done here can be done over water,” he said.
Gaetz said Trump’s final decision will likely depend on the strength of Florida’s congressional delegation. He credited former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, Sen. Gaetz’s son, with persuading Trump in the past to block drilling during his administration, arguing that similar pressure could work again.
“I believe members of the Florida congressional delegation … can have an impact on this decision,” he said, adding that Sen. Rick Scott and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have strong working relationships with Trump.
Gaetz said Florida lawmakers can regulate drilling only within three miles of shore. Beyond that, influence is political, not legal.
“This is a federal decision,” he said. “We have the bully pulpit … but the state of Florida has no authority beyond that point.”
Responding to claims that drilling is needed for U.S. energy independence, Gaetz said other regions, including Alaska and the Dakotas, offer substantial reserves without jeopardizing national security.
“The Gulf is not the last place for us to get oil,” he said. “It’s not the place we ought to explore with oil platforms that compromise our national defense.”
Gaetz’s comments echo concerns raised by eight members of Florida’s congressional delegation, who last week asked Trump to withdraw specific blocks from the Big Beautiful Gulf Lease Sale 1, set for Dec. 10, 2025.
In their letter, Reps. Jimmy Patronis, Neal Dunn, Mike Haridopolos, Daniel Webster, Vern Buchanan, Laurel Lee, Scott Franklin, and Byron Donalds warned that drilling within the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range would interfere with hypersonic weapons development, counter-drone testing, and aviation operations.
The range supports hundreds of annual missions, including 226 bombs dropped, more than 535 missiles fired, and roughly 67,000 rounds discharged, much of it at night to accommodate special operations forces.
Local leaders have also moved to oppose the plan.
On Nov. 18, the Okaloosa County Commission voted unanimously to send a letter to Trump urging permanent protection of the training range.
Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel, who serves on the Defense Strategic Initiatives Board and raised concerns toward the end of a meeting, said drilling would “completely ruin the mission field” for Eglin Air Force Base, which she noted anchors roughly 70% of the county’s economy.
Commissioners wrote that oil platforms and drilling vessels would obstruct controlled airspace, degrade testing corridors, and present risks to the coastal environment, which is central to the region’s tourism economy.
According to the Patronis office, defense spending accounts for $21.8 billion of Northwest Florida’s gross domestic product and supports nearly 200,000 jobs across the region.
Local officials warned that any disruption to military capacity could spread quickly through housing, small businesses, and long-term economic development.
Ketchel also expressed concern that offshore drilling, or even the perception of environmental risk, could undermine visitor confidence in the Gulf’s “world-class” natural beauty, threatening hotels, restaurants, fishing charters and coastal recreation industries.
Gaetz said Florida’s historical opposition to offshore drilling has been bipartisan and broad-based, noting that voters statewide approved a constitutional amendment banning drilling in state waters.
“This is an all-Florida issue,” he said. “It’s not about party. It’s about safeguarding our military and safeguarding our economy.”
Pro Communi Bono
St. Francis De Sales, Ora Pro Nobis!
Register or login with Mid Bay News and never get another pop up on our site!
