United States v. California

I

The United States began this original action against the State of California under Art. Ill, § 2, of the Constitution in 1945 to determine whether the right to exploit natural resources under the submerged lands off the California coast belongs to the United States or to California.

In 1947, this Court decreed that the United States owned all submerged lands extending seaward of the ordinary low-water mark on the California coast. United States v. California, 332 U. S. 804, 805. See also United States v. California, 332 U. S. 19 (1947). When Congress enacted the Submerged Lands Act of 1953,…