[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 93 (Tuesday, June 2, 2026)]
[House]
[Pages H3758-H3760]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMMITTING LEASES FOR ENERGY ACCESS NOW ACT
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 1687) to amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to increase
the frequency of lease sales, to require replacement sales, and for
other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1687
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 ``Committing Leases for Energy
Access Now Act'' or the ``CLEAN Act''.
SEC. 2. GEOTHERMAL LEASING.
(a) Annual Leasing.--Section 4(b) of the Geothermal Steam
Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1003(b)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``2 years'' and inserting
``year'';
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs
(5) and (6), respectively; and
(3) after paragraph (2), by inserting the following:
``(3) Replacement sales.--If a lease sale under paragraph
(1) for a year is canceled or delayed, the Secretary of the
Interior shall conduct a replacement sale during the same
year.
[[Page H3759]]
``(4) Requirement.--Of the nominated parcels eligible for
geothermal development and utilization under the resource
management plan in effect for the State, the Secretary shall,
in conducting a lease sale under paragraph (2), offer for
lease--
``(A) 75 percent of such nominated parcels; and
``(B) the remaining 25 percent of such nominated parcels,
unless the Secretary provides a written justification that
identifies a statutory, environmental, or administrative
basis that prevents the Secretary from offering such
nominated parcels for lease.''.
(b) Deadlines for Consideration of Geothermal Drilling
Permits.--Section 4 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30
U.S.C. 1003) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(h) Deadlines for Consideration of Geothermal Drilling
Permits.--
``(1) Notice.--Not later than 30 days after the date on
which the Secretary receives an application for any
geothermal drilling permit, the Secretary shall--
``(A) provide written notice to the applicant that the
application is complete; or
``(B) notify the applicant that information is missing and
specify any information that is required to be submitted for
the application to be complete.
``(2) Issuance or deferral.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the
Secretary has provided written notice to an applicant for a
geothermal drilling permit that the application for such
permit is complete pursuant to paragraph (1)(A), the
Secretary shall--
``(i) issue the permit, if the requirements under the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.) and other applicable law have been completed within
such timeframe; or
``(ii) defer the decision on the permit and provide to the
applicant a notice--
``(I) that specifies any steps that the applicant could
take for the permit to be issued; and
``(II) that includes a list of actions that need to be
taken by the agency to comply with applicable law, together
with timelines and deadlines for taking such actions, which
shall not exceed the deadlines specified in section 107(g) of
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C.
4336a(g)).
``(B) Deadline for deferred decisions.--If the Secretary
defers a decision on a permit under subparagraph (A)(ii), the
Secretary shall issue a decision on the permit not later than
10 days after the applicant takes any steps specified
pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii)(I) and the agency takes the
actions listed pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii)(II) in
accordance with any applicable timelines and deadlines.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Arkansas (Mr. Westerman) and the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms.
Stansbury) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the
gentleman from Arkansas.
General Leave
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to
include extraneous material to H.R. 1687, the bill now under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Arkansas?
There was no objection.
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I rise today in support of H.R. 1687, the Committing Leases for
Energy Access Now Act, or the CLEAN Act.
Introduced by Representative Fulcher, this bill is essential to
bolstering geothermal energy production. Across the United States, the
Bureau of Land Management is responsible for geothermal permitting on
roughly 245 million acres of public land. The previous administration,
however, was unwilling to hold lease sales at the rate necessary to
support the industry and lower energy costs for Americans.
Thankfully, President Trump and Secretary Burgum understand the need
for abundant, low-cost, reliable energy sources and have made expanding
domestic energy production a priority. Under their leadership, BLM has
begun promoting annual geothermal lease sales.
Representative Fulcher's CLEAN Act codifies these annual lease sales
into law and furthers prudent efforts to secure American energy
dominance for generations to come.
In October 2025, the BLM held a geothermal lease sale in Nevada that
brought in a record-setting $9.4 million in bids. Similarly, the BLM's
geothermal lease sale in California last August netted over $2.7
million across just 13 parcels of land. These revenues help fund other
important functions of the Bureau, including mapping, permitting,
scientific research, and conservation.
In addition to requiring annual lease sales, the bill sets clear
expectations and deadlines for geothermal permitting. By implementing
transparent, predictable, and timely reviews, the CLEAN Act
incentivizes further investment and helps meet the Nation's rapidly
rising energy demands.
During committee markup, the bipartisan CLEAN Act was unanimously
approved with an amendment reflecting meaningful collaboration among
Democrats, Republicans, the Department of the Interior, and industry.
The bill's commonsense approach to incentivizing domestic geothermal
energy investment and helping everyday Americans lower their monthly
electric bills is a crucial step that Congress should not hesitate to
take.
I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 1687, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. STANSBURY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
concern.
The CLEAN Act is designed to speed up geothermal leasing and
permitting, which we support. It would add a 30-day deadline for the
Secretary to issue geothermal permits to drill if all environmental
reviews have been completed.
The CLEAN Act would also require the Department of the Interior to
hold lease sales once a year instead of every 2 years. The current
leasing schedule means that geothermal developers can wait for years
just for the chance to lease public lands, creating delays in getting
clean, reliable energy to American communities.
This faster leasing schedule only applies to States where developers
have expressed interest in geothermal leasing, so it won't make extra
work for field offices that have no reason to do this work.
I thank the bill's sponsor and my colleagues across the aisle for
working with the Natural Resources Committee Democrats to retain
important agency discretion in which public lands are leased.
The bill, as originally drafted before these revisions, required that
the Department of the Interior offer a lease to every piece of public
land that the industry expressed an interest in. That old language
mirrored language that passed in the big, ugly bill for oil and gas,
requiring the Secretary to offer to lease all the public lands that any
industry would want.
It doesn't matter if that meant allowing drilling next to a drinking
water source like Colorado's Aurora Reservoir or the destruction of
beloved trails like a popular trail in North Dakota's Badlands.
Since the passage of the big, ugly bill, BLM has put up public lands
for leasing in both of these areas, creating local backlash. Geothermal
drilling is certainly less dangerous than oil and gas, but there are
still risks and places that are inappropriate to lease for
environmental, cultural, and other reasons.
Natural Resources Committee Democrats have worked across the aisle in
good faith to make a compromise, which will allow BLM to lease most of
the industry-nominated public lands but allows the Secretary to choose
not to lease lands for legal or environmental reasons.
{time} 1550
We can speed up the build-out of clean, reliable geothermal energy
without sacrificing special places and community support.
While I recognize that this bill still contains controversial
provisions, including the requirement that 75 percent of nominated
parcels for geothermal development be leased, we are encouraged by the
reduction of that threshold.
Committee Democrats are urging the Senate to carefully consider the
legislation and prioritize a balanced approach to managing our public
lands, one that prioritizes responsible management of public lands for
our communities and for the environment.
Mr. Speaker, Committee Democrats urge our colleagues to support the
legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, most of America's geothermal resources
lie beneath Federal lands, and interest in leasing those areas
continues to grow. It is imperative that we increase the frequency of
geothermal lease sales from every 2 years to annually and further
streamline the permitting process. Doing so will help keep energy costs
low and keep America's lights on.
[[Page H3760]]
Mr. Speaker, I applaud Representative Fulcher for his work on this
important legislation which I urge my colleagues to support, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Westerman) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1687, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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