Legislative hearing on H.R. 301, 398, 1077, 1687, 5576, 5587, 5617, 5631, 5638

The House Committee on Natural Resources GOP Subcommittee on Energy and Minerals Resources held a legislative hearing on December 17, 2025, to discuss a bipartisan slate of nine bills aimed at reforming geothermal energy development on federal lands. The hearing focused extensively on procurement-related issues such as streamlining leasing and permitting processes, establishing categorical exclusions to expedite environmental reviews, and improving coordination and expertise within the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to reduce project timelines and costs. Witnesses, including BLM officials and industry representatives like Ormat Technologies and Energy, testified in support of the bills, emphasizing the potential for geothermal energy to provide reliable, clean baseload power and the need for regulatory reforms to unlock investment and scale production. Key legislative proposals included annual lease sales, cost recovery authority for BLM permitting, creation of a geothermal ombudsman and permitting task force, and royalty reform to incentivize development. The hearing also addressed the importance of maintaining environmental safeguards while reducing duplicative regulatory burdens. Members discussed the economic and national security benefits of geothermal energy, the role of technological advances, and the need for consistent and efficient federal permitting to meet rising energy demand and compete globally.