American Helium Production Act of 2015

This bill amends the Mineral Leasing Act to permit the Department of the Interior to lease federal land for helium exploration, development, and production under substantially the same terms and conditions as federal land is leased for oil and gas exploration, development, and production.

Any lease issued for gas exploration or development in effect grants the lessee a right of first refusal to engage in helium exploration and production on land subject to the lease under the Mineral Leasing Act as well as under the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands.

The Department shall collect a $5,000 permit processing fee per application at the time the final decision is made whether to issue a permit to drill under a helium lease.

The Bureau of Land Management must prepare a programmatic environmental impact statement for an agencywide helium exploration and development program.