California Coastal Commission settles lawsuit with SpaceX and apologizes for political bias in regulatory decision

The California Coastal Commission issued a formal apology to SpaceX in a legal settlement, acknowledging that commissioners allowed their political beliefs about CEO Elon Musk to influence their October 2024 decision to reject SpaceX's request to increase Falcon 9 launch frequency at Vandenberg Space Force Base. The commission agreed in the settlement not to consider irrelevant political factors in future regulatory actions concerning SpaceX. SpaceX had sued after the commission rejected the launch increase proposal, citing commercial activity concerns under coastal regulations.