H.R. 7422

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7422 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7422

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

September 25, 2024

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

AN ACT

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, PERMITTING, AND 
INSPECTIONS.

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 an applicant for, or 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) inspecting and monitoring--
``(i) geophysical exploration activities;
``(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 cooperative cost share 
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 applicant; 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 credited to the currently applicable appropriation, 
account, or fund of the Department of the Interior as 
discretionary offsetting collections, and shall be available 
only to the extent provided in advance in appropriations Acts 
for--
``(A) processing the application for geothermal 
leases, including any application for operations plans, 
geothermal drilling permits, utilization plans, site 
licenses, facility construction permits, commercial use 
permits, and any other approval associated with 
geothermal leases; and
``(B) inspecting and monitoring--
``(i) geophysical exploration activities;
``(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 geothermal leases.''.

SEC. 3. REPORT.

(a) Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the 
geothermal industry and other stakeholders, 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;
(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.

Passed the House of Representatives September 24, 2024.

Attest:

KEVIN F. MCCUMBER,

Clerk.