Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act of 2025
Latest action · May 20, 2026 Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 569.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 14, 2025
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act of 2025
This bill expands the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to give the Department of the Interior the authority to collect certain fees from applicants for, or holders of, geothermal leases through September 30, 2032. Specifically, Interior may direct those applicants or leaseholders to reimburse the United States for costs from (1) processing applications for geothermal leases on federal land, such as applications for geothermal drilling permits; and (2) inspecting and monitoring geothermal exploration and development activities, including reclamation activities.
Interior may reduce the amount of the fee if it determines that (1) the full reimbursement would impose an economic hardship on the applicant, or (2) a less than full reimbursement is necessary to promote the greatest use of geothermal resources.
Interior may use those fees only to the extent that they are provided in advance in appropriations acts for (1) processing applications for geothermal leases, and (2) inspecting and monitoring related exploration and development activities.
Within five years of the bill's enactment, Interior must submit to Congress a report that includes an assessment of how the fees affect Interior's geothermal leasing program and any recommendations for updates to the fees and the program.
Cosponsors
Members who signed on, in the order they did.
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Natural Resources Committee | Referred Jan 14, 2025Markup Mar 5, 2026Reported May 20, 2026 |
| Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee | Referred Dec 9, 2025Hearings Dec 16, 2025Discharged Mar 5, 2026 |
Actions 9
Everything that happened, newest first.
- May 20, 2026Reported by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 119-655.
- May 20, 2026Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 569.
- Mar 5, 2026Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Discharged
- Mar 5, 2026Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Mar 5, 2026Ordered to be Reported by Unanimous Consent.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H3762 | Bruce Westerman R-AR | Jun 2, 2026 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 171, no. 7, January 14, 2025, page H149.
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 4605 | Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act of 2026 | Related bill | Jul 15, 2026 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to provide cost-recovery authority for the Department of the Interior.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act of 2025
- Short Title(s) as Reported to House
- Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act of 2025
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Energy.
Text 2
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- May 20, 2026Reported in House
- Jan 14, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
