Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Revokes Vanguard Energy Local Business Tax Receipt Following Federal Sanctions Against Cuba’s State-Owned Oil Company

Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez announced today that his office has revoked the Local Business Tax Receipt for Vanguard Energy following company statements regarding proposed fuel shipments to the communist socialist cuban dictatorship involving Cuba’s state-owned oil company, Unión Cuba-Petróleo, known as CUPET.

Vanguard Energy stated that it signed a contract with a Cuban importing agency to lease fuel storage facilities owned by CUPET and planned to ship gasoline and diesel fuel to Cuba by tanker for distribution on the island. The same report included a statement from the U.S. Department of State that Vanguard Energy had not received any U.S. license for the transaction and that U.S. sanctions remain in effect absent specific guidance or licensing to the contrary.

On June 11, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the United States is sanctioning CUPET under President Trump’s Executive Order 14404, stating that Cuba’s communist elites have weaponized energy as a tool of social control and corrupt profit.

“Vanguard Energy’s reported transaction involves Cuba’s state-owned oil company, CUPET, which is sanctioned by the United States,” said Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez. “In light of the company’s reported contractual arrangements, the State Department’s public statement regarding licensing, and the announcement of federal sanctions against CUPET, our office has revoked Vanguard Energy’s Local Business Tax Receipt.”

Fernandez said the Tax Collector’s Office is taking this action pursuant to applicable state and local laws governing Local Business Tax Receipts and business compliance in Miami-Dade County.

“Any business operating in Miami-Dade County must comply with federal sanctions, state law, and local requirements,” Fernandez added. “Miami-Dade County will not serve as a base of operations for activity that undermines federal law or supports the Cuban dictatorship,” Fernandez continued. “We stand with the rule of law, with the Cuban people, and with the efforts of President Trump and Secretary Rubio to deny the regime the resources it uses to control and repress its own people.”