[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7422 Reported in House (RH)]
<DOC>
Union Calendar No. 566
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7422
[Report No. 118-670]
To amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to provide cost-recovery
authority for the Department of the Interior.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 20, 2024
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on Natural Resources
September 12, 2024
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
in italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on
February 20, 2024]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to provide cost-recovery
authority for the Department of the Interior.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority
Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. COST RECOVERY FROM GEOTHERMAL LEASING AND PERMITTING.
Section 6 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1005) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(j) Cost Recovery.--
``(1) In general.--During the period that begins on the
date of enactment of this subsection and ends September 30,
2031, the Secretary may require a holder of a geothermal lease
to reimburse the United States for all reasonable
administrative and other costs incurred by the United States
from--
``(A) processing the application for the geothermal
lease, including any application for an operations
plan, geothermal drilling permit, utilization plan,
site license, facility construction permit, commercial
use permit, and any other approval associated with a
geothermal lease; and
``(B) monitoring--
``(i) geophysical exploration operations;
``(ii) the drilling, plugging, and
abandonment of wells; and
``(iii) the construction, operation,
termination, and reclamation of any well site
or facility for the utilization of geothermal
resources pursuant to the geothermal lease.
``(2) Considerations.--In determining whether to require
reimbursement under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider
whether there is in existence a contributed funds agreement
between the United States and the holder of a geothermal lease.
``(3) Adjustments.--The Secretary may reduce the amount to
be reimbursed under paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines--
``(A) that full reimbursement would impose an
economic hardship on the holder of the geothermal
lease; or
``(B) that a less than full reimbursement is
necessary to promote the greatest use of geothermal
resources.
``(4) Use.--The amounts reimbursed under this subsection
shall be available to the Secretary of the Interior for
expenditure for--
``(A) processing the application for the geothermal
lease, including any application for an operations
plan, geothermal drilling permit, utilization plan,
site license, facility construction permit, commercial
use permit, and any other approval associated with a
geothermal lease; and
``(B) monitoring--
``(i) geophysical exploration operations;
``(ii) the drilling, plugging, and
abandonment of wells; and
``(iii) the construction, operation,
termination, and reclamation of any well site
or facility for the utilization of geothermal
resources pursuant to the geothermal lease.''.
SEC. 3. REPORT.
(a) Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit to the Committee
on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate, and make publicly
available on the website of the Department of the Interior, a report
that includes--
(1) an assessment of how the amendments made by section 2
of this Act affected the Bureau of Land Management's geothermal
program, including the accomplishments of each field office
relating to the coordination and processing of geothermal
permits and any other approval associated with a geothermal
lease;
(2) any recommendations for reauthorization of section 6(j)
of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970, as added by this Act; and
(3) any other recommendations for updates to such section
and the Bureau of Land Management's geothermal program.
(b) Considerations.--In developing the report required in
subsection (a), the Secretary of the Interior shall solicit facts or
information from the geothermal industry and other stakeholders.
Union Calendar No. 566
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7422
[Report No. 118-670]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to provide cost-recovery
authority for the Department of the Interior.
_______________________________________________________________________
September 12, 2024
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed