This bill amends the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to speed up geothermal energy development on federal lands. It exempts small-scale geothermal exploration projects, such as drilling test wells, from being classified as "major federal actions" under the National Environmental Protection Act, meaning they would not require the lengthy environmental review process that larger projects face. Instead, lease holders would simply need to notify the Secretary of the Interior at least 30 days before starting drilling. The bill also directs the Secretary, working with the Secretary of Energy, to designate specific "geothermal leasing priority areas" on federal lands within five years, based on factors like economic viability and access to energy transmission infrastructure. These priority area designations must be reviewed and updated every five years, and once an area has undergone required environmental impact analysis, individual lease sales within it would not need separate NEPA reviews, allowing companies and federal agencies to move faster on approving geothermal energy projects nationwide.
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