Just days after the California Coastal Commission, which oversees the state’s beach and coastlines, rejected a proposal for the business to start up 50 rockets into space this month, Elon Musk’s SpaceX is suing.
In the national suit, filed Tuesday in the Central District of California, the firm accuses the state company of “egregiously and unjustly overreaching its authority”, and of engaging in “naked political bias” against its billionaire owner.
Since SpaceX and the California Coastal Commission both sought to increase their annual launch quickly, tensions have been brewing for decades. The state agency has asked military personnel to reduce the impact and enhance wildlife surveillance because it is concerned about what will happen to the country’s wildlife if jet blasts from Vandenberg Space Force Base drastically boost.
The state board denied a plan to increase the number of SpaceX rocket launch, and some users of the committee cited Musk’s political positions on X and raised fears about his businesses ‘ work history.
The lawsuit argued that “rarely has a government agency made it so obvious that it was overreaching its legal authority to punish a business for the political views and claims of its largest shareholder and CEO.”
SpaceX is suing for an order that would make the launch plan for the SpaceX Facon 9 “federal agency activity,” meaning that the state agency may not manage it through its permit application, and that the commission’s rejection of the launch plan was in violation of the Constitution’s first and fourteenth amendments.
On Wednesday, a maritime commission spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
Through the U.S. Space Force, the company entered into an agreement in 2023 that limited its build options to six rockets a year, but it broke it as it attempted to accelerate launch efforts. Military officials said they anticipated submitting another plea by March for up to 100 SpaceX missiles a month, and the company is currently planning to launch 50 by the end of this year.
33 rocket launches have been made so far by SpaceX from Vandenberg Space Force Base.
The payment, which is responsible for protecting California’s beach and beaches, expressed concern about the effects of the significant boost in launches and the effects that the blasts and occasionally accompanying sonic booms would have on local biodiversity like sea otters, bats, northern white plovers, and red-legged frogs.
The state agency complained for decades that SpaceX authorities had turned down numerous requests to appear before the table out of anger.
The California Coastal Commission has the authority to approve or reject permits issued by private companies and individuals in relation to the coast, but it cannot deny national activity. Otherwise, the fee must reach an agreement with the military, known as a national consistency plan, to control the impacts on the coast and wildlife.
Military officials claimed that SpaceX launches were regarded as a federal activity because of their leading contractor status with the Space Force. However, the state agency has increasingly questioned that rationale, questioning in public meetings whether SpaceX should instead be forced to apply for launch permits since 80 % to 87 % of its rocket launches are not carrying U. S. government payloads, but satellites for one of Musk’s other private companies, Starlink.
One of seven conditions that the California Coastal Commission sought to agree on was the increase in rocket blasts off the Santa Barbara County coast in August, which the California Coastal Commission requested in August. The agency requested that the U.S. Space Force increase its monitoring of wildlife both inside and close to the base.
A written plan to mitigate the effects of sonic booms, which the military recently acknowledged were reaching across about 100 miles of coastline, as well as a light management plan for night launches and steps to study the impacts on beach access, the fishing industry, and the plan.
Initial resistance to the plan was met with military action last week, but in an ostensible effort, they conceded.
Despite the commission’s decision to reject the plan Thursday, military officials said they remained committed to reaching an agreement, and would still abide by the agreement to increase wildlife monitoring.
” The vote has n’t changed the]Department of the Air Force ] or Vandenberg’s unwavering commitment to preserving the California coastline and the precious species that reside there”, said Col. Mark Shoemaker, Space Launch Delta 30 commander in an email Tuesday. The Space Force’s commitment to collaboration is unprecedented, just as our commitment to ensuring the continuation of dialogue.
Members of the commission praised Space Force and Air Force personnel last week, but they also reaffirmed that SpaceX should be present since the majority of launches were private.
Members also raised questions about Musk, who they claimed he had inserted himself into the presidential race and had spread conspiracies about federal hurricane relief efforts, as well as disparaging remarks about the transgender community.
At Thursday’s meeting, Commissioner Gretchen Newsom claimed that Elon Musk is “hopping around the country, spewing and tweeting political lies and attacking]the Federal Emergency Management Agency” while claiming that he wants to assist hurricane victims with free Starlink access the internet.
Additionally, Newsom cited injuries suffered by Musk’s employees, including those at SpaceX and Tesla, as well as lawsuits filed against the businesses for allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination, and toxic work environments.
Commissioner Mike Wilson stated that” this company is owned by the richest person in the world with direct control of what might be the world’s most expansive communications system.” ” Just last week that person was talking about political retribution”.
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