CLEAN Act

This bill amends the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to increase the frequency of geothermal lease sales, require replacement sales when sales are canceled or delayed, and set deadlines for processing geothermal drilling permit applications.

Sec. 2, Geothermal leasing: The bill changes the minimum frequency of lease sales from every 2 years to every year. It adds a requirement that if a lease sale for a year is canceled or delayed, the Secretary of the Interior must conduct a replacement sale during the same year. In conducting a lease sale, the Secretary must offer for lease 75 percent of nominated parcels eligible for geothermal development under the state's resource management plan, and also offer the remaining 25 percent unless the Secretary provides a written justification identifying a statutory, environmental, or administrative basis preventing that.

Sec. 2, Deadlines for consideration of geothermal drilling permits: Within 30 days of receiving a geothermal drilling permit application, the Secretary must either notify the applicant that the application is complete or specify missing information. Within 30 days after notifying the applicant that the application is complete, the Secretary must either issue the permit if all legal requirements are met, or defer the decision and provide a notice specifying steps the applicant could take and a list of agency actions needed to comply with law, including timelines and deadlines not exceeding those in the National Environmental Policy Act. If the decision is deferred, the Secretary must issue a decision within 10 days after the applicant takes the specified steps and the agency completes its listed actions.