Bureau of Land Management
Solar Energy Permitting and Program Resources
The Approved Record of Decision for Resource Management Plan Amendments for Utility-Scale Solar Energy Development was issued on December 20th, 2024 — details are available on the BLM's Utility-Scale Solar Energy Development PEIS/RMPA webpage. Relevant information on the 2024 Western Solar Plan and the BLM's Renewable Energy Rule issued in July 2024, is in the process of being updated on this website.
Permitting requirements that apply to solar energy right-of-way (ROW) leases within specific types of designated leasing areas (DLAs).
As of 2020, the following categories of DLAs have been identified in BLM programmatic land use plans:
Note that the land designations of the 2016 Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP) superseded the 2012 Solar PEIS designations. Under 43 CFR 2802.10(a), the BLM CA may decide to follow a competitive process and issue a lease for solar development within DRECP‑designated Development Focus Areas (DFAs).
Additionally, the leasing regulations at 43 CFR 2800 (as amended in 2017) addressed procedures for leasing in lands outside of DLAs that subsequently become DLAs.