Renewable Energy Rule

Delivering a clean energy economy

The Bureau of Land Management announced a proposed update of its renewable energy regulations to promote the development of solar and wind energy on public lands. The proposed Renewable Energy Rule would reduce fees nationwide and facilitate development in priority areas consistent with the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to permit 25 gigawatts of clean energy on public lands by 2025 and to transition to 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2035.

The Energy Act of 2020 authorized the BLM to reduce acreage rents and capacity fees to promote wind and solar development. The BLM initially reduced these fees through guidance in 2022, and the proposed reductions in the Renewable Energy Rule would codify those reductions, improving financial predictability for developers pursuing long-term authorizations on public land.  
  
The proposed rule would expand the BLM’s ability to accept leasing applications in priority areas for wind and solar development without first going through a full auction. The proposed Renewable Energy Rule would retain the BLM’s ability to hold competitive auctions where appropriate and consistent with past practice and expand the BLM’s ability to accept non-competitive leasing applications when they are in the public interest. This update would help facilitate development in these identified priority areas while maintaining appropriate flexibility to ensure a fair return for the use of the public lands. 
 
The proposed Renewable Energy Rule would also continue the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to American manufacturing and good-paying, family-supporting jobs while helping to build a clean energy economy that works for everyone. The proposal contemplates further reducing fees for renewable energy projects developed with American-made parts and materials or constructed using union labor.