236 
HR 6 PAP 
(c) DATA RETRIEVAL SYSTEM.—The memorandum of 
understanding shall establish a joint data retrieval system 
that— 
(1) is capable of tracking lease and permit ap-
plications; and 
(2) provides to the applicant information as to 
the status of an application within the Departments 
of the Interior and Agriculture, including an estimate 
of the time required for administrative action. 
SEC. 265. ASSESSMENT OF GEOTHERMAL ENERGY POTEN-
TIAL. 
Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act and thereafter as the availability of data and devel-
opments in technology warrants, the Secretary of the Inte-
rior, acting through the Director of the United States Geo-
logical Survey and in cooperation with the States, shall— 
(1) update the Assessment of Geothermal Re-
sources made during 1978; and 
(2) submit to Congress the updated assessment. 
SEC. 266. COOPERATIVE OR UNIT PLANS. 
Section 18 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 
U.S.C. 1017) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 18. UNIT AND COMMUNITIZATION AGREEMENTS. 
‘‘(a) ADOPTION OF UNITS BY LESSEES.—
237 
HR 6 PAP 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—For the purpose of more 
properly conserving the natural resources of any geo-
thermal reservoir, field, or like area, or any part 
thereof (whether or not any part of the geothermal 
reservoir, field, or like area, is subject to any coopera-
tive plan of development or operation (referred to in 
this section as a ‘unit agreement’)), lessees thereof and 
their representatives may unite with each other, or 
jointly or separately with others, in collectively adopt-
ing and operating under a unit agreement for the res-
ervoir, field, or like area, or any part thereof, includ-
ing direct use resources, if determined and certified 
by the Secretary to be necessary or advisable in the 
public interest. 
‘‘(2) MAJORITY INTEREST OF SINGLE LEASES.— 
A majority interest of owners of any single lease shall 
have the authority to commit the lease to a unit 
agreement. 
‘‘(3) INITIATIVE OF SECRETARY.—The Secretary 
may also initiate the formation of a unit agreement, 
or require an existing Federal lease to commit to a 
unit agreement, if in the public interest. 
‘‘(4) MODIFICATION
OF
LEASE
REQUIREMENTS 
BY SECRETARY.—
238 
HR 6 PAP 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may, in 
the discretion of the Secretary and with the con-
sent of the holders of leases involved, establish, 
alter, change, or revoke rates of operations (in-
cluding drilling, operations, production, and 
other requirements) of the leases and make condi-
tions with respect to the leases, with the consent 
of the lessees, in connection with the creation and 
operation of any such unit agreement as the Sec-
retary may consider necessary or advisable to se-
cure the protection of the public interest. 
‘‘(B) UNLIKE
TERMS
OR
RATES.—Leases 
with unlike lease terms or royalty rates shall not 
be required to be modified to be in the same unit. 
‘‘(b) 
REQUIREMENT
OF
PLANS
UNDER
NEW 
LEASES.—The Secretary may— 
‘‘(1) provide that geothermal leases issued under 
this Act shall contain a provision requiring the lessee 
to operate under a unit agreement; and 
‘‘(2) prescribe the unit agreement under which 
the lessee shall operate, which shall adequately protect 
the rights of all parties in interest, including the 
United States. 
‘‘(c) MODIFICATION OF RATE OF PROSPECTING, DE-
VELOPMENT, AND PRODUCTION.—The Secretary may re-
239 
HR 6 PAP 
quire that any unit agreement authorized by this section 
that applies to land owned by the United States contain 
a provision under which authority is vested in the Sec-
retary, or any person, committee, or State or Federal officer 
or agency as may be designated in the unit agreement to 
alter or modify, from time to time, the rate of prospecting 
and development and the quantity and rate of production 
under the unit agreement. 
‘‘(d) EXCLUSION FROM DETERMINATION OF HOLDING 
OR CONTROL.—Any land that is subject to a unit agreement 
approved or prescribed by the Secretary under this section 
shall not be considered in determining holdings or control 
under section 7. 
‘‘(e) POOLING OF CERTAIN LAND.—If separate tracts 
of land cannot be independently developed and operated to 
use geothermal steam and associated geothermal resources 
pursuant to any section of this Act— 
‘‘(1) the land, or a portion of the land, may be 
pooled with other land, whether or not owned by the 
United States, for purposes of development and oper-
ation under a communitization agreement providing 
for an apportionment of production or royalties 
among the separate tracts of land comprising the pro-
duction unit, if the pooling is determined by the Sec-
retary to be in the public interest; and
240 
HR 6 PAP 
‘‘(2) operation or production pursuant to the 
communitization agreement shall be treated as oper-
ation or production with respect to each tract of land 
that is subject to the communitization agreement. 
‘‘(f) UNIT AGREEMENT REVIEW.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years after 
the date of approval of any unit agreement and at 
least every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) review each unit agreement; and 
‘‘(B) after notice and opportunity for com-
ment, eliminate from inclusion in the unit agree-
ment any land that the Secretary determines is 
not reasonably necessary for unit operations 
under the unit agreement. 
‘‘(2) BASIS FOR ELIMINATION.—The elimination 
shall— 
‘‘(A) be based on scientific evidence; and 
‘‘(B) occur only if the elimination is deter-
mined by the Secretary to be for the purpose of 
conserving and properly managing the geo-
thermal resource. 
‘‘(3) EXTENSION.—Any land eliminated under 
this subsection shall be eligible for an extension under 
section 6(g) if the land meets the requirements for the 
extension.
241 
HR 6 PAP 
‘‘(g) DRILLING OR DEVELOPMENT CONTRACTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may, on such 
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, approve 
drilling or development contracts made by 1 or more 
lessees of geothermal leases, with 1 or more persons, 
associations, or corporations if, in the discretion of 
the Secretary, the conservation of natural resources or 
the public convenience or necessity may require or the 
interests of the United States may be best served by 
the approval. 
‘‘(2) HOLDINGS OR CONTROL.—Each lease oper-
ated under an approved drilling or development con-
tract, and interest under the contract, shall be ex-
cepted in determining holdings or control under sec-
tion 7. 
‘‘(h) COORDINATION WITH STATE GOVERNMENTS.— 
The Secretary shall coordinate unitization and pooling ac-
tivities with appropriate State agencies.’’. 
SEC. 267. ROYALTY ON BYPRODUCTS. 
Section 5 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 
U.S.C. 1004) (as amended by section 242(a)) is amended 
in subsection (a) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(2) a royalty on any byproduct that is a min-
eral specified in the first section of the Mineral Leas-
242 
HR 6 PAP 
ing Act (30 U.S.C. 181), and that is derived from 
production under the lease, at the rate of the royalty 
that applies under that Act to production of the min-
eral under a lease under that Act;’’. 
SEC. 268. LEASE DURATION AND WORK COMMITMENT RE-
QUIREMENTS. 
Section 6(i) of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 
U.S.C. 1005(i)) is amended by striking paragraph (2) and 
inserting the following: 
‘‘(2) The Secretary shall, by regulation, establish pay-
ments under this subsection at levels that ensure the diligent 
development of the lease.’’. 
SEC. 269. ANNUAL RENTAL. 
(a) ANNUAL RENTAL RATE.—Section 5 of the Geo-
thermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1004) (as amended 
by section 242(a)) is amended in subsection (a) by striking 
paragraph (3) and inserting the following: 
‘‘(3) payment in advance of an annual rental of 
not less than— 
‘‘(A) for each of the first through tenth years 
of the lease— 
‘‘(i) in the case of a lease awarded in 
a noncompetitive lease sale, $1 per acre or 
fraction thereof; or
243 
HR 6 PAP 
‘‘(ii) in the case of a lease awarded in 
a competitive lease sale, $2 per acre or frac-
tion thereof for the first year and $3 per 
acre or fraction thereof for each of the sec-
ond through 10th years; and 
‘‘(B) for each year after the 10th year of the 
lease, $5 per acre or fraction thereof;’’. 
(b) TERMINATION OF LEASE FOR FAILURE TO PAY 
RENTAL.—Section 5 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 
(30 U.S.C. 1004) (as amended by section 242(a)) is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) TERMINATION OF LEASE FOR FAILURE TO PAY 
RENTAL.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall termi-
nate any lease with respect to which rental is not 
paid in accordance with this Act and the terms of the 
lease under which the rental is required, on the expi-
ration of the 45-day period beginning on the date of 
the failure to pay the rental. 
‘‘(2) 
NOTIFICATION.—The 
Secretary 
shall 
promptly notify a lessee that has not paid rental re-
quired under the lease that the lease will be termi-
nated at the end of the period referred to in para-
graph (1).
244 
HR 6 PAP 
‘‘(3) REINSTATEMENT.—A lease that would oth-
erwise terminate under paragraph (1) shall not ter-
minate under that paragraph if the lessee pays to the 
Secretary, before the end of the period referred to in 
paragraph (1), the amount of rental due plus a late 
fee equal to 10 percent of the amount.’’. 
SEC. 270. ADVANCED ROYALTIES REQUIRED FOR CES-
SATION OF PRODUCTION. 
Section 5 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 
U.S.C. 1004) (as amended by section 249(b)) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) ADVANCED ROYALTIES REQUIRED
FOR CES-
SATION OF PRODUCTION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 
and (3), if, at any time after commercial production 
under a lease is achieved, production ceases for any 
reason, the lease shall remain in full force and effect 
for a period of not more than an aggregate number 
of 10 years beginning on the date production ceases, 
if, during the period in which production is ceased, 
the lessee pays royalties in advance at the monthly 
average rate at which the royalty was paid during 
the period of production. 
‘‘(2) REDUCTION.—The amount of any produc-
tion royalty paid for any year shall be reduced (but
245 
HR 6 PAP 
not below 0) by the amount of any advanced royalties 
paid under the lease to the extent that the advance 
royalties have not been used to reduce production roy-
alties for a prior year. 
‘‘(3) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 
apply if the cessation in production is required or 
otherwise caused by— 
‘‘(A) the Secretary; 
‘‘(B) the Secretary of the Air Force; 
‘‘(C) the Secretary of the Army; 
‘‘(D) the Secretary of the Navy; 
‘‘(E) a State or a political subdivision of a 
State; or 
‘‘(F) a force majeure.’’. 
SEC. 271. LEASING AND PERMITTING ON FEDERAL LAND 
WITHDRAWN FOR MILITARY PURPOSES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 
and the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Sec-
retary of the Air Force, the Secretary of the Army, the Sec-
retary of the Navy, interested States, political subdivisions 
of States, and representatives of the geothermal industry, 
and other interested persons, shall submit to the appro-
priate committees of Congress a joint report on leasing and
246 
HR 6 PAP 
permitting activities for geothermal energy on Federal land 
withdrawn for military purposes. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—The report required under sub-
section (a) shall include— 
(1) a description of the military geothermal pro-
gram, including a description of— 
(A) any differences between the military 
geothermal program and the nonmilitary geo-
thermal program, including required security 
procedures and operational considerations; and 
(B) the reasons the differences described in 
subparagraph (A) are significant; 
(2) with respect to the military geothermal pro-
gram, a description of— 
(A) revenues or energy provided to the De-
partment of Defense and facilities of the Depart-
ment Defense; and 
(B) royalty structures, as applicable; 
(3) any revenue sharing with States and polit-
ical subdivisions of States and other benefits from— 
(A) the implementation of the Geothermal 
Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C 1001 et seq.) and 
other applicable Federal law by the Secretary of 
the Interior; and
247 
HR 6 PAP 
(B) the administration of geothermal leas-
ing under section 2689 of title 10, United States 
Code, by the Secretary of Defense; 
(4) if appropriate— 
(A) a description of the current methods 
and procedures used to ensure interagency co-
ordination, as needed, in developing renewable 
energy sources on Federal land withdrawn for 
military purposes; and 
(B) an identification of any new procedures 
that would improve interagency coordination to 
ensure efficient processing and administration of 
leases or contracts for geothermal energy on Fed-
eral land withdrawn for military purposes, con-
sistent with the defense purposes of the with-
drawals; and 
(5) recommendations for any legislative or ad-
ministrative actions that would increase geothermal 
production, including— 
(A) a common royalty structure; 
(B) leasing procedures; and 
(C) other changes that— 
(i) increase production; 
(ii) offset military operation costs; or
248 
HR 6 PAP 
(iii) enhance the ability of Federal 
agencies to develop geothermal resources. 
(c) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section affects the legal 
status of geothermal leasing and development conducted by 
the Department of the Interior and the Department of De-
fense. 
SEC. 272. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. 
(a) The Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 
1001 et seq.) is amended by striking ‘‘geothermal steam and 
associated geothermal resources’’ each place it appears and 
inserting ‘‘geothermal resources’’. 
(b) The first section of the Geothermal Steam Act of 
1970 (30 U.S.C. 1001 note) is amended by striking ‘‘That 
this’’ and inserting the following: 
‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
‘‘This’’. 
(c) Section 2 of the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 
U.S.C. 1001) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘SEC. 2. As’’ and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘As’’; and 
(2) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the 
following: