GEO Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5631) to appoint a Geothermal Ombudsman and establish a Geothermal Permitting Task Force from within the Bureau of Land Management, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to add extraneous material on H.R. 5631, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5631, the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act, sponsored by Representative Hurd.

The United States has an abundance of natural resources, and many of these resources are found on Federal land throughout the country. There is one resource in particular that is uniquely positioned to help meet our growing energy demand in the Western United States, and that is geothermal energy.

The first geothermal project on Bureau of Land Management lands was approved in 1978. Since then, technological advancements and increased data collection have given geothermal projects significant momentum, and BLM lands have attracted strong interest from geothermal producers.

The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that the Great Basin Region alone holds about 135 gigawatts of next-generation geothermal potential. That is enough to power roughly 100 to 135 million homes.

Today, there are 51 operating power plants producing geothermal energy on BLM-managed public lands, with a combined installed capacity of more than 2.6 gigawatts.

Unfortunately, cumbersome leasing and permitting practices on Federal lands have prolonged project timelines and increased costs for geothermal developers. This is why I am pleased to support the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act.

This past December, during a legislative hearing, we heard from multiple witnesses who stressed the importance of commonsense measures that further exploration, provide timely lease sales, and enhance geothermal expertise within Federal agencies. This legislation includes provisions from six bipartisan bills that accomplish just that.

The Geothermal Ombudsman for National Deployment and Optimal Reviews Act, introduced by Representative Hurd, will provide BLM with the needed staffing flexibility by appointing a geothermal ombudsman from within that agency who will coordinate among offices and assign expert personnel from across the Department of the Interior to assist with approvals as part of a newly formed Geothermal Permitting Task Force.

The Geothermal Gold Book Development Act, introduced by Representative Ansari, directs DOI to identify and publish standard procedures and guidelines in a Gold Book for efficient and environmentally responsible geothermal leasing and permitting for use by BLM field offices and geothermal operators.

The Geothermal Royalty Reform Act, introduced by Representative Kennedy, provides a much-needed fix to the royalty system for geothermal energy, ensuring fair cost distribution for new geothermal facilities on Federal land.

The Streamlining Thermal Energy through Advanced Mechanisms Act, or the STEAM Act, introduced by Representative Lee, extends categorical exclusions available to oil and gas activities to geothermal development.

The Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act, introduced by Representative Ocasio-Cortez, would authorize the BLM to establish fees for geothermal operators to offset permitting costs.

Lastly, the Geothermal Energy Opportunity Act, or the GEO Act, introduced by Representative Maloy, requires the BLM to follow through on its job of processing geothermal permits and authorizations unless a Federal court directs it to do otherwise.

Together, these reforms will help to release the heat below our feet and bolster American energy dominance.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to join me in support of H.R. 5631, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Hurd), who is the lead sponsor of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Kennedy).

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record six letters of support for the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act. These letters are from ClearPath Action, Corporate Energy Buyers Association, Enhanced Geothermal Systems Deployment Coalition, Geothermal Rising Action, Ormat Technologies, and Zanskar Geothermal & Minerals.

ClearPath Action,

June 2, 2026.

Hon. Bruce Westerman,

Chairman, House Committee on Natural Resources, Washington,

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act. At a time when competition with China on AI and data centers is at an all-time high, we cannot afford to fall behind in power generation. Geothermal energy can provide reliable, baseload power throughout the West, as well as other parts of the country, and enhance American energy independence.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the sponsors of the bill included in this bipartisan package for their work to bring this legislation to the floor, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5631, the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act.

I begin by thanking my Republican colleagues Representatives Lee, Maloy, and Kennedy and my Democratic colleagues Representatives Ansari and Ocasio-Cortez for their partnership on this bipartisan legislation. At a time when Americans are often told Congress cannot work together across the aisle, this bill is proof that we still can.

Geothermal energy represents one of the most promising opportunities in America's energy future.

When we talk about geothermal energy in this bill, we are not talking about heating and cooling systems for individual buildings. We are talking about large-scale electricity generation from the heat miles beneath the Earth's surface, energy available around the clock and dispatched when the grid needs it.

It is American energy. It is always available. It strengthens grid reliability. It supplies reliable power for military installations, advanced manufacturing, and critical infrastructure. It can help meet growing energy demand without relying on foreign supply chains.

The good news is that the challenge facing geothermal energy today is not a lack of resources. It is not a lack of innovation. It is not technology. It is not lack of entrepreneurial spirit.

The challenge is process. It is red tape.

Geothermal projects can be complex and capital intensive. Now, this legislation does not solve every challenge facing the industry, but it addresses one of the challenges that Congress can solve: unnecessary delay, fragmented permitting, and regulatory uncertainty.

When projects spend years navigating regulatory uncertainty, these costs ultimately get built into the project. Greater certainty helps attract investment, accelerate deployment, and bring promising projects online more quickly.

Across the West, we have extraordinary geothermal potential, but permitting remains fragmented, timelines are uncertain, and expertise is often spread unevenly across the Federal Government.

As a result, projects face delays that serve no one's interests.

This legislation takes a practical approach to solving those problems. It improves coordination. It increases certainty. It streamlines permitting. It helps ensure that expertise is available where it is needed. It also provides the tools necessary to move worthy projects through the process more efficiently while maintaining responsible environmental stewardship. In short, this bill helps the system work the way Congress intended it to work.

America has tremendous geothermal potential, but we have a deployment problem. The good news, though, is we can solve it. If we are serious about American energy security, American competitiveness, and American innovation, we should remove unnecessary barriers that prevent us from developing the resources that we already possess.

The future will require more electricity, more reliability, more domestic energy production. Geothermal can help meet that challenge. This legislation helps unlock that potential.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Westerman for his invaluable help on this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 5631.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman and my colleague from Colorado for their leadership in this package.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of a rare issue that is uniting Americans from the right, the left, and the center: geothermal energy. Particularly during a time when it too often can feel like Congress can't agree on anything, today's package is a standout in the best way.

As the United States continues to face increasing energy demand here at home and rising energy costs from abroad, fully harnessing our domestic

geothermal resources is more important than ever.

My home State of Nevada has been a pioneer of both conventional and next-generation geothermal energy, including as the site of the country's first enhanced geothermal plant.

With exciting and ongoing developments in the geothermal technology, the Department of Energy has estimated that America will be able to affordably capture enough of our abundant geothermal resources nationwide to power more than 65 million homes over the next 25 years.

Let me be clear: This is baseload, 24/7 clean energy, and that is why I am proud to co-lead the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act with Congressman Hurd.

Our bipartisan package is the most significant geothermal legislation in more than a half a century since the foundational Geothermal Steam Act of 1970. I am thrilled that the package includes my STEAM Act, which I am proud to co-lead with Representative Celeste Maloy and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto. The STEAM Act will ensure that the geothermal industry has the same flexibility to explore and develop on previously disturbed or studied public lands that the oil and gas industry has had for upwards of two decades. At long last, we will be leveling the playing field for this promising and proven 24/7 clean energy source.

Mr. Speaker, there is a reason that the STEAM Act and all six bills in the package unanimously passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee: It is because Members from all corners of the ideological spectrum know that geothermal can make a real difference.

The U.S. contains more than five terawatts of geothermal resources, enough to meet the electricity needs of the entire world. With energy costs going up, I have long said that we need to embrace an all-of-the- above approach to bring down these costs for hardworking Americans. This geothermal package and the homegrown energy that it supports will do just that.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support our bipartisan, commonsense, and cost-saving legislation.

Mr. Speaker, today, we have an opportunity to unlock one of America's greatest untapped energy resources and invest in our Nation's future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5631, the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act.

First, I thank Representative Hurd, Chairman Westerman, and my colleagues on the Natural Resources Committee, and the staff, theirs and mine, who put the work in to build this historic geothermal package. I am proud that my own bill, the Geothermal Royalty Reform Act, is being passed as part of it, giving developers the regulatory certainty they need to build.

Geothermal is one of the most promising, untapped renewable energy resources on the planet, and no State is better positioned to lead the world into this frontier than the State of Utah, with more than 10 gigawatts of reliable power beneath it.

The Department of Energy projects that next-generation geothermal could provide 90 gigawatts of power nationwide by 2050, a 20 times increase, enough to power millions of homes while meeting our rising demand.

It is firm, baseload power, the kind that can keep the grid stable and energy affordable for working families. Energy costs are climbing, and families feel it every month. Geothermal can be part of the answer.

What is standing in the way? For too long, it was our own regulatory environment. Geothermal developers have been forced through a maze of outdated permitting and duplicative reviews. This bill will clear those obstacles instead of creating them.

Mr. Speaker, the resource is real, the technology is proven, and American industry is ready to build. The only thing holding us back now is Washington itself. This bill changes that and puts the clean power beneath our feet to work. Let's unlock American energy and deliver the reliable power this country runs on.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5631, the Geothermal Energy Advancement Act. This bipartisan package will deliver safe, clean, and reliable energy for the American people, helping to lower energy prices and meet growing electricity demand.

The bills in this package will let us make use of recent breakthroughs in geothermal technology that unlock gigawatts of clean domestic energy, helping get American families off of the fossil fuel roller coaster.

I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for working together to speed up the build-out of next-generation geothermal without sacrificing environmental or community protections.

These bills will help fund the experts needed to efficiently process permits, establish a specialized problem-solving ombudsman to coordinate and resolve permitting disputes, and to standardize best practices across field offices.

They will extend a streamlined permitting pathway available to oil and gas wells on already developed lands to geothermal development, give the Department of the Interior a deadline to issue authorizations after reviews are complete, and modify how royalties are collected to incentivize new developments on one lease.

All of these are commonsense reforms that safely speed up the build- out of clean, reliable energy, and I am proud to stand in support of this timely, bipartisan package.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to hearing more from our bill's cosponsors, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Lee).

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.