Sponsor
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Representative · D-NY
Representative · D-NY
Official title: To amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to provide cost-recovery authority for the Department of the Interior.
Introduced January 14, 2025 by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez · Last progress January 14, 2025
The bill shifts permitting and inspection costs onto developers to fund faster review and greater transparency, helping program sustainability and planning but raising project costs and creating potential funding, environmental, and community-risk trade-offs.
Geothermal applicants, leaseholders, and developers bear inspection and processing fees so the federal government spends less on permitting while projects gain funded inspections/monitoring that can speed review and oversight.
BLM/DOI decisionmakers, industry, and communities receive a publicly available, evidence-based report (with solicited stakeholder input) on how the Act affected geothermal permitting, improving transparency and enabling better-informed policy and investment planning.
Small geothermal developers and hardship cases can get fee reductions or waivers at the Secretary's discretion, improving viability for lower-margin projects and small businesses.
Geothermal applicants, leaseholders, and developers face higher upfront permitting and inspection costs, increasing project development costs and potentially deterring investment or slowing projects.
Rural communities and developers in lower-margin areas may see slower clean energy deployment if passed-through fees make projects uneconomic unless fees are reduced or waived.
DOI program funding for staff or activities could be uncertain because fee collections are only available if Congress provides appropriations, risking gaps in staffing or program continuity.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Authorizes DOI (through 9/30/2032) to require geothermal lease applicants/holders to reimburse federal processing, inspection, monitoring, and reclamation costs; collections are offsetting and subject to appropriations.
Allows the Department of the Interior to require geothermal lease applicants and leaseholders to reimburse the federal government for reasonable administrative, processing, inspection, monitoring, and reclamation-related costs for geothermal activities from enactment through September 30, 2032. Reimbursements would be credited to Interior accounts as offsetting collections and made available only if appropriated; the Secretary must consider existing cooperative cost-share agreements and may reduce fees for economic hardship or to encourage resource development. The Secretary must also produce a stakeholder-informed report within five years assessing the policy and recommending whether to reauthorize and modify the cost-recovery authority.