Energy

Hershel ‘Woody' Williams National Medal of Honor Monument Location Act

Hershel "Woody" Williams National Medal of Honor Monument Location Act This bill requires the authorized monument honoring Medal of Honor recipients to be located within the Reserve (the great cross-axis of the National Mall, which generally extends from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial and from the White House to the Jefferson Memorial).

Held at the desk.

Mining Regulatory Clarity Act

Mining Regulatory Clarity Act This bill allows mining operators to use federal lands for activities ancillary to mining, such as waste disposal, regardless of whether those lands contain mineral deposits valuable enough to be mined (mineral validity). It also establishes the Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund. The bill addresses a 2022 decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit related to the Rosemont Copper Mine in Arizona (commonly known as the Rosemont decision , described further in CRS Report R48166 ). The court held that mining claims are only allowed where mineral validity has been established and that mill site claims are more appropriate means for establishing a mining waste disposal site under the Mining Act. The bill allows a mining operator to (1) locate and include within its plan of operations as many mill site claims (e.g., areas for waste rock disposal) as are reasonably necessary for its operations, and (2) use or occupy public land in accordance with an approved plan of operations. Additionally, the bill requires any revenue generated from fees for such mill site claims to be deposited into the Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund. The Department of the Interior must use the fund for certain abandoned hardrock mine reclamation activities.

Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 357.

Post-Disaster Reforestation and Restoration Act

Post-Disaster Reforestation and Restoration Act of 2025 This bill directs the Department of the Interior to carry out a program for post-disaster reforestation and restoration. Interior must identify covered lands requiring reforestation and restoration following unplanned disturbances that are unlikely to experience natural regeneration without assistance. Covered land means (1) any federal land or interest in land administered by the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, the Forest Service, or the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and (2) any Indian Forest Land or Rangeland. Interior must propose a list that prioritizes projects for reforestation and restoration for each fiscal year. Interior may (1) carry out priority projects through grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements; and (2) support any grant contract or cooperative agreement that may be necessary to ensure adequate and appropriate seed and seedling availability to further the objectives of priority projects.

Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Geothermal Cost-Recovery Authority Act of 2025

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.

Ordered to be Reported by Unanimous Consent.

GEO Act

Geothermal Energy Opportunity Act or the GEO Act This bill expands the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to establish a deadline for the Department of the Interior to process applications related to geothermal leases. Specifically, Interior must process each application for a geothermal drilling permit or other authorization under a valid existing geothermal lease within 60 days after completing all requirements under applicable federal laws and regulations (including the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the National Historic Preservation Act) unless a U.S. federal court vacates or provides injunctive relief for the underlying lease.

Ordered to be Reported by Unanimous Consent.

A bill to designate the outdoor amphitheater at the Blue Ridge Music Center in Galax, Virginia, as the "Rick Boucher Amphitheater".

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.

A bill to remove restrictions from a parcel of land in Paducah, Kentucky.

This bill directs the Department of the Interior to remove all deed restrictions from approximately 3.62 acres located at 2956 Park Avenue, on the Paducah Memorial Army Reserve Center in Paducah, Kentucky. The restrictions include easements, exceptions, reservations, terms, conditions, and covenants described in the quitclaim deed that was executed on April 27, 2012. The deed conveyed land from Interior to the City of Paducah, Kentucky.

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

Reversionary Interest Conveyance Act

Reversionary Interest Conveyance Act This bill directs the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to offer to sell the reversionary interest of the United States in approximately 8.43 acres of land in Sacramento, California, as generally depicted on a specified map dated November 7, 2022. Within two years of receiving a request from the owner of the land, the BLM must offer the reversionary interest and convey the reversionary interest to the buyer upon payment. The payment must be in an amount that is at least the fair market value of the reversionary interest. The buyer must also pay all costs related to the applicable conveyance of the reversionary interest, including all surveys, appraisals, and other administrative costs. The bill subjects the conveyance to valid existing rights. The proceeds from the sale must be deposited into Federal Land Disposal Account.

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.