H.R. 7329 — FREEDOM Act

This section states congressional findings that federal permitting delays, failures to meet deadlines, and permit revocations for energy projects cause financial losses for project sponsors; deter energy infrastructure investment; undermine U.S. energy security and economic competitiveness; and increase costs of energy and mineral infrastructure, thereby raising living costs and power prices for American families and businesses.

This section adds a new title XII to the Energy Act of 2020 to promote reliable energy and open markets. Subtitle A defines key terms, including "covered energy project" as U.S. construction of infrastructure to develop, produce, generate, store, transport, or distribute energy; capture, remove, transport, or store carbon dioxide; or mine, extract, beneficiate, or process minerals. Subtitle B establishes federal land energy and mineral reforms. Section 12101 accelerates rights-of-way under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) for eligible projects (i.e., covered energy projects), by— (1) requiring the Secretaries of the Interior or Agriculture, as applicable, to issue any required cost recovery agreement within 30 days of a complete FLPMA right-of-way application; and (2) directing those Secretaries to develop or adopt, within 180 days of enactment, one or more National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) categorical exclusions (allowing for extraordinary circumstances) for low-disturbance activities necessary for eligible projects, including— (A) individual surface disturbances of less than 5 acres previously analyzed in a NEPA document; (B) the same type of activity conducted in the prior 5 years; and (C) activities on previously disturbed lands analyzed as reasonably foreseeable in a land use plan or NEPA document approved in the prior 5 years.

This section amends the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 to (1) require competitive geothermal lease sales at least once per year (from every two years) for land in a state with pending nominations if otherwise available, and to mandate a non-cancellable replacement sale within 180 days if a sale is cancelled or delayed; (2) authorize the Secretary of the Interior to recover costs from permit applicants and lessees for timely processing of leases, permits, and authorizations, and for inspection and monitoring of activities, with implementing rules required within 180 days of enactment; (3) direct the Secretary to establish within one year of enactment a federal permitting process for concurrent review of multiple geothermal project phases, including surface exploration, geophysical exploration (including well drilling), production well drilling, and geothermal resource use (including power plant construction); (4) amend sec. 390 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to extend National Environmental Policy Act categorical exclusions previously available for oil and gas leasing and operations to geothermal exploration and development; and (5) require the Secretary to appoint a Geothermal Ombudsman within the Bureau of Land Management within 60 days of enactment to serve as a liaison for field offices and applicants, provide dispute resolution, monitor permitting timelines, develop best practices, coordinate with the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, and submit annual reports to specified congressional committees evaluating permit processing effectiveness. This section further provides that, notwithstanding the Mineral Leasing Act, the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act of 1982, or related regulations but subject to applicable state or tribal requirements, the Secretary shall not require a permit to drill for an oil and gas lease under the Mineral Leasing Act for specified actions occurring on non-federal surface.