(b) LEASE AND PERMIT APPLICATIONS.—The memo-
randum of understanding shall include provisions that—
(1) identify known geothermal areas on public 
lands within the National Forest System and to the 
extent necessary review management plans to con-
sider leasing of such lands under the Geothermal 
Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) as a 
land use; 
(2) establish an administrative procedure for 
processing geothermal lease applications, including 
lines of authority, steps in application processing, 
and timeframes for application processing; 
(3) provide that the Secretary concerned 
shall—
(A) within 14 days after receiving an ap-
plication for a lease, determine whether the ap-
plication contains sufficient information to 
allow processing of the application; and 
(B) if the application is found not to con-
tain sufficient information to allow processing 
the application, before the end of such 14-day 
period, provide written notification to the lease 
applicant that the application is being returned 
to the applicant without processing and an
itemization of the deficiencies in the application 
that prevent processing; 
(4) provide that the Secretary concerned shall 
within 30 days after receiving a lease application, 
provide written notice to the lease applicant regard-
ing the status of the application, including an esti-
mate of the time that will be required to complete 
action on the application; and 
(5) establish an administrative procedure for 
processing geothermal development permits, includ-
ing lines of authority, steps in permit processing, 
and timeframes for permit processing. 
(c) FIVE-YEAR LEASING PLAN.—The memorandum 
of understanding shall develop a 5-year plan for leasing 
under the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1001 
et seq.) of public land in the National Forest System. The 
plan for geothermal leasing shall be updated every 5 years. 
(d) DATA RETRIEVAL SYSTEM.—The memorandum 
of understanding shall establish a joint data retrieval sys-
tem that is capable of—
(1) tracking lease and permit applications and 
requests; and 
(2) providing to the applicant or requester in-
formation as to their status within the Departments
of the Interior and Agriculture, including an esti-
mate of the time required for administrative action. 
SEC. 6. REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS OF NEPA ANALYSES, 
DOCUMENTATION, AND STUDIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Geothermal Steam Act of 
1970 (30 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) is amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 30. REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS OF NEPA ANAL-
YSES, DOCUMENTATION, AND STUDIES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior 
may, through royalty credits, reimburse a person who is 
a lessee, operator, operating rights owner, or applicant for 
a lease under this Act for reasonable amounts paid by the 
person for preparation by the Secretary (or a contractor 
or other person selected by the Secretary) of any project-
level analysis, documentation, or related study required 
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with respect to the lease. 
‘‘(b) CONDITIONS.—The Secretary may provide reim-
bursement under subsection (a) only if—
‘‘(1) adequate funding to enable the Secretary 
to timely prepare the analysis, documentation, or re-
lated study is not appropriated; 
‘‘(2) the person paid the amounts voluntarily; 
and
‘‘(3) the person maintains records of its costs 
in accordance with regulations prescribed by the 
Secretary.’’. 
(b) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by this 
section shall apply with respect to any lease entered into 
before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(c) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—The Secretary 
shall issue regulations implementing the amendment made 
by this section by not later than 90 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
To carry out section 5 through 7 there are authorized 
to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Interior such 
sums as may be necessary.
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