[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 995 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 995

 To amend the Energy and Policy Act of 2005 to reauthorize a provision 
 relating to geothermal lease revenue, to direct the Secretary of the 
  Interior to establish a pilot project to streamline certain Federal 
     renewable energy permitting processes, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 7, 2009

 Mr. Ensign (for himself and Mr. Reid) introduced the following bill; 
   which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Energy and Policy Act of 2005 to reauthorize a provision 
 relating to geothermal lease revenue, to direct the Secretary of the 
  Interior to establish a pilot project to streamline certain Federal 
     renewable energy permitting processes, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Renewable Energy Permitting Act of 
2009''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Pilot project.--The term ``Pilot Project'' means the 
        pilot project to improve Federal renewable energy permit 
        coordination established under section 3(a).
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.

SEC. 3. PILOT PROJECT TO IMPROVE FEDERAL RENEWABLE ENERGY PERMIT 
              COORDINATION.

    (a) Establishment.--During the period of fiscal years 2009 through 
2018, the Secretary shall establish and carry out a pilot project to 
improve Federal renewable energy permit coordination.
    (b) Memorandum of Understanding.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into a 
        memorandum of understanding for purposes of this section with--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture;
                    (B) the Administrator of the Environmental 
                Protection Agency; and
                    (C) the Chief of Engineers.
            (2) State participation.--The Secretary may request that 
        the Governors of the States of Arizona, California, Nevada, and 
        Wyoming be signatories to the memorandum of understanding 
        described in paragraph (1).
    (c) Designation of Qualified Staff.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the date on 
        which the memorandum of understanding under subsection (b) is 
        signed, all Federal signatory parties shall, if appropriate, 
        assign to each of the field offices specified in subsection (d) 
        an employee who has expertise in the regulatory issues relating 
        to the office in which the employee is employed, including, as 
        applicable, particular expertise in--
                    (A) the consultations and the preparation of 
                biological opinions under section 7 of the Endangered 
                Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536);
                    (B) permits under section 404 of Federal Water 
                Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344);
                    (C) regulatory matters under the Clean Air Act (42 
                U.S.C. 7401 et seq.);
                    (D) planning under section 14 of the National 
                Forest Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a); and
                    (E) the preparation of analyses under the National 
                Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
                seq.).
            (2) Duties.--Each employee assigned under paragraph (1) 
        shall--
                    (A) not later than 90 days after the date of 
                assignment, report to field managers of the Bureau of 
                Land Management in the office to which the employee is 
                assigned;
                    (B) be responsible for all issues relating to the 
                jurisdiction of the home office or agency of the 
                employee; and
                    (C) participate as part of the team of personnel 
                working on proposed energy projects, planning, and 
                environmental analyses.
    (d) Field Offices.--The field offices referred to in subsection 
(c)(1) shall include offices in, at a minimum, the States of Arizona, 
California, Nevada, and Wyoming.
    (e) Additional Personnel.--The Secretary shall assign to each field 
office specified in subsection (d) any additional personnel that are 
necessary to ensure the effective implementation of--
            (1) the Pilot Project; and
            (2) other programs administered by the field offices, 
        including inspection and enforcement relating to renewable 
        energy development on Federal land, in accordance with the 
        multiple use mandate of the Federal Land Policy and Management 
        Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.).
    (f) Distribution of Solar and Wind Energy Rental Income.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraphs (2) through (5) and 
        notwithstanding any other provision of law, for fiscal year 
        2009 and each fiscal year thereafter, of the amount of solar 
        and wind energy rental income collected by the Bureau of Land 
        Management (in lieu of depositing all of the income into the 
        general fund of the Treasury)--
                    (A) 50 percent shall be paid by the Secretary of 
                the Treasury to the 1 or more States within the 
                boundaries of which the income is derived;
                    (B) 25 percent shall be paid by the Secretary of 
                the Treasury to the 1 or more counties within which the 
                income is derived;
                    (C)(i) in the case of each of fiscal years 2009 
                through 2018, 20 percent or $5,000,000, whichever is 
                less, shall be deposited in a special fund in the 
                Treasury, to be known as the ``Renewable Energy Permit 
                Processing Improvement Fund''; and
                    (ii) in the case of fiscal year 2019 and each 
                fiscal year thereafter, 20 percent shall remain in the 
                general fund of the Treasury; and
                    (D) 5 percent shall be deposited in a special fund 
                in the Treasury, to be known as the ``Solar Energy Land 
                Reclamation, Restoration, and Mitigation Fund''.
            (2) Valuation.--To determine the value of public land for 
        the purpose of determining rental income described in paragraph 
        (1)--
                    (A) the value of the public land used for solar 
                energy projects shall be determined by the Bureau of 
                Land Management based on statistics of the National 
                Agricultural Statistical Service;
                    (B) the value of the public land used for wind 
                energy projects shall be determined in accordance with 
                the rental schedule established by the Secretary, 
                acting through the Bureau of Land Management, in effect 
                as of the date of enactment of this Act; and
                    (C) the value of the public land used for 
                geothermal energy projects shall be determined in 
                accordance with the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 
                U.S.C. 15801 et seq.).
            (3) Renewable energy permit processing improvement fund.--
        Amounts in the Renewable Energy Permit Processing Improvement 
        Fund established under paragraph (1)(C)(i) shall be available 
        to the Secretary for the coordination and processing of 
        renewable energy permits required for renewable energy projects 
        on Federal public land.
            (4) Solar energy land reclamation, restoration, and 
        mitigation fund.--
                    (A) In general.--Amounts in the Solar Energy Land 
                Reclamation, Restoration, and Mitigation Fund under 
                paragraph (1)(D) shall be available to the Secretary 
                for the purpose of--
                            (i) reclaiming and restoring public land 
                        used for the production of solar energy, 
                        including land used for ancillary facilities; 
                        and
                            (ii) mitigating impacts on public land, 
                        including protecting other sensitive public 
                        land if the land used for solar or wind power 
                        generation cannot be adequately restored 
                        without the use of funds made available under 
                        this paragraph, as determined by the Secretary.
                    (B) Maximum amount.--
                            (i) In general.--The total amount of funds 
                        deposited in the Solar Energy Land Reclamation, 
                        Restoration, and Mitigation Fund under 
                        paragraph (1)(D) shall not exceed $50,000,000.
                            (ii) Surplus amounts.--If the total amount 
                        of funds deposited in the Solar Energy Land 
                        Reclamation, Restoration, and Mitigation Fund 
                        under paragraph (1)(D) is $50,000,000, any 
                        additional amounts that would otherwise be 
                        deposited in the Fund under paragraph (1)(D) 
                        shall remain in the general fund of the 
                        Treasury.
            (5) Availability of funds.--Amounts under this subsection 
        shall be available for expenditure in accordance with this 
        subsection, without further appropriation and without fiscal 
        year limitation.
    (g) Transfer of Funds.--For the purposes of coordination and 
processing of renewable energy permits required for renewable energy 
projects on Federal public land under the administration of the Pilot 
Project offices specified in subsection (d), the Secretary may 
authorize the expenditure or transfer of such funds as are necessary 
to--
            (1) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service;
            (2) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
            (3) the Forest Service;
            (4) the Environmental Protection Agency;
            (5) the Corps of Engineers; and
            (6) the States of Arizona, California, Nevada, and Wyoming 
        (for costs incurred by the States relating to the permitting 
        process).
    (h) Fees.--During the period in which the Pilot Project is 
authorized, the Secretary shall not implement any regulation or 
initiate any rulemaking to enable an increase in fees to recover 
additional costs relating to renewable energy permits required for 
renewable energy projects on Federal public land.
    (i) Effect on Other Authority.--Nothing in this section affects--
            (1) the operation of any Federal or State law; or
            (2) any delegation of authority made by the head of a 
        Federal agency the employees of which are participating in the 
        Pilot Project.
    (j) Length of Leases for Renewable Energy Projects on Public 
Land.--The length of leases for renewable energy projects on public 
land carried out under this Act shall be determined in accordance with 
the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 
seq.).
    (k) Reports.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that--
            (1) describes the results of the Pilot Project as of the 
        date of the report; and
            (2) makes a recommendation to the President regarding 
        whether the Pilot Project should be implemented throughout the 
        United States.
    (l) Deposit and Use of Geothermal Leave Revenues.--Section 234 of 
the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15873) is amended--
            (1) in the section heading, by striking ``for 5 fiscal 
        years''; and
            (2) in subsection (a), by striking ``in the first 5 fiscal 
        years beginning after the date of enactment of this Act''.
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