The Trump administration has paid close to $2 billion to energy companies to abandon plans for several offshore wind farms along the US East and West Coasts, drawing criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. The payments include nearly $1 billion to French firm TotalEnergies to relinquish leases off the coasts of North Carolina and New York, and over $900 million for two additional projects — Bluepoint Wind (off New York and New Jersey) and Golden State Wind (off California). Critics, including Elizabeth Klein, former director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (the federal agency overseeing offshore energy leases), argue the payments are unlawful and were made without proper process or transparency, raising questions about whether the administration had the legal authority to refund lease payments already collected.