1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Public Land Renewable Energy Development Act of 2017 . 2. Definitions In this Act: (1) Covered land The term covered land means land that is— (A) public land administered by the Secretary; and (B) not excluded from the development of geothermal, solar, or wind energy under— (i) a land use plan established under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); or (ii) other Federal law. (2) Exclusion area The term exclusion area means covered land that is identified by the Bureau of Land Management as not suitable for development of renewable energy projects. (3) Federal land The term Federal land means— (A) land of the National Forest System (as defined in section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 ( 16 U.S.C. 1609(a) )); or (B) public land. (4) Fund The term Fund means the Renewable Energy Resource Conservation Fund established by section 7(c)(1). (5) Priority area The term priority area means covered land identified by the land use planning process of the Bureau of Land Management as being a preferred location for a renewable energy project. (6) Public land The term public land has the meaning given the term public lands in section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1702 ). (7) Renewable energy project The term renewable energy project means a project carried out on covered land that uses wind, solar, or geothermal energy to generate energy. (8) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior. (9) Variance area The term variance area means covered land that is— (A) not an exclusion area