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Natural Resources panel advances bill that would exempt some geothermal exploration from NEPA
Summary
The House Natural Resources Committee on May 1 advanced H.R. 5576, sponsored by Rep. Fulcher, which removes one round of NEPA review for certain small-footprint geothermal exploration wells; critics said the measure creates an untethered NEPA waiver and removes essential safeguards.
The House Committee on Natural Resources on May 1 voted to report H.R. 5576, the Enhancing Geothermal Production on Federal Lands Act, to the House after adopting an amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by the bill’s sponsor.
The measure, introduced by Representative Fulcher and debated at a committee markup, would exempt certain geothermal exploration activities from National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review when they meet specific thresholds the bill sets for disturbance and well size. "Removing even a single review in this process, we will increase the efficiency of the exploration process and decrease the cost of each project," the chair said in opening remarks.
Supporters argued the bill addresses duplicative federal reviews that can delay projects. Representative Stauber said developers often face repeated NEPA reviews for the same project and that streamlining would lower costs and speed deployment. "These operators are forced to conduct round after round of NEPA reviews multiple times for the same project," he said, citing a field tour where a project is expected to produce hundreds of megawatts.
Opponents said the bill, as drafted, goes too far by creating a blanket waiver rather than directing agencies to craft categorical exclusions. "As we read it, this bill would waive all NEPA analysis for certain geothermal exploration activities," Ranking Member Huffman said. He warned that the bill would remove public input, tribal consultation and other statutory safeguards for federal resources and urged colleagues to replace the waiver with a directive for the Department of the Interior to develop appropriate categorical exclusions.
Huffman offered an amendment (HUFFMAN Number One) to strike the NEPA waiver and instead require Interior to develop categorical exclusions within one year; that amendment failed on a recorded vote, with the clerk reporting 16 yeas and 21 nays. The committee then adopted the Fulcher substitute and ordered H.R. 5576 reported to the House; on the final recorded vote to report the bill, the clerk reported 21 yeas and 16 nays.
The bill’s language specifies disturbance and well-diameter thresholds that proponents say target small-footprint exploration, but opponents cautioned that codifying technical limits in statute could date quickly as industry practices evolve. The committee record shows disagreement over whether Congress should set precise acreage or diameter limits, or leave those technical determinations to agency experts.
The committee also debated the relationship of the bill to existing BLM categorical exclusions and other agency actions. Ranking Member Huffman noted recent BLM actions adopting categorical exclusions for some geothermal activities and urged continued oversight and coordination.
The committee reported the bill to the House with the majority recommendation. The measure will next be scheduled for floor consideration under the House’s rules and may face further amendment or negotiation there.
