New Energy Bill Sets 90-Day Permit Deadlines and Limits Federal Project Halts to Speed Up Mining and Geothermal Projects

If you’ve ever waited months for a simple building permit just to put a deck on your house, you know how frustrating red tape can be. Now, imagine that on a massive scale—like building a geothermal power plant or a new mine. The FREEDOM Act is basically a 'fast-pass' for energy projects on federal land. It sets hard deadlines for the government: routine permits must be decided in 90 days, and even the most complex ones have a two-year cap. If an agency drags its feet, the project developer can take them to court, and a judge can actually hire an outside contractor to finish the paperwork using a new $50 million 'Permitting Performance Fund.' It’s a bold move to ensure that once a project gets the green light and the money starts flowing, the government can’t easily pull the plug or let it sit in a dusty inbox.

The 'No Take-Backs' Rule

One of the biggest shifts here is how the bill treats projects that are already underway. Under Title I, if a project has secured most of its permits, federal agencies are generally banned from revoking or suspending them. The only way the government can stop a 'substantially permitted' project is if they can prove an 'immediate and substantiated threat of serious harm.' For a developer, this is like having a guaranteed contract; for a local community or an environmental group, it might feel like their ability to flag new concerns is being sidelined once construction starts. The bill also stops agencies from voluntarily asking a court to pause a permit for re-review unless the developer agrees, effectively locking in approvals once they are granted.

Digging Deep and Moving Fast

For the mining and geothermal industries, this bill is a major operational shift. Title II allows miners to claim multiple 5-acre 'mill sites' for waste disposal as long as they are 'reasonably necessary.' While this helps manage the literal tons of rock that mining produces, the phrase 'reasonably necessary' is a bit vague and could lead to more federal land being used for waste than originally planned. On the geothermal side, Title III ensures that even if a project is tied up in a lawsuit, the Department of the Interior has to keep processing the permits within 60 days of an environmental review. It’s designed to stop 'litigation lag' from killing projects before they even start, though it does mean projects might move forward while their legal status is still being debated in court.

Paying the Tab and Cleaning Up

This isn't just a free pass for industry; there are some new costs involved. Geothermal companies will now have to pay fees to cover the government’s administrative and inspection costs through 2033. There’s also a new tiered royalty system: companies pay less (1%–2.5%) for the first ten years to help get the project off the ground, then the rate jumps to 2%–5% later. On the environmental side, the bill creates an 'Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund' using fees from those new mill sites to clean up old, dangerous mines. So, while the bill makes it easier to start new projects, it uses some of that activity to pay for the messes left behind by the miners of the past. Whether this speed-up leads to cheaper electricity or just less oversight is the $50 million question.