[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1063 Reported in House (RH)]
Union Calendar No. 289
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 1063
[Report No. 113-390]
To require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct an assessment of
the capability of the Nation to meet our current and future demands for
the minerals critical to United States manufacturing and agricultural
competitiveness and economic and national security in a time of
expanding resource nationalism, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 12, 2013
Mr. Lamborn introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources
April 1, 2014
Additional sponsors: Mr. Cole, Mr. Diaz-Balart, Mr. Cramer, Mr.
Coffman, Mr. Amodei, Mrs. Lummis, Mr. Stivers, Mr. Mullin, and Mr. Ross
April 1, 2014
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union
and ordered to be printed
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct an assessment of
the capability of the Nation to meet our current and future demands for
the minerals critical to United States manufacturing and agricultural
competitiveness and economic and national security in a time of
expanding resource nationalism, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``National Strategic and Critical
Minerals Policy Act of 2013''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) the availability of minerals and metals is essential
for economic growth, national security, technological
innovation, and the manufacturing and agricultural supply
chain;
(2) the exploration, production, processing, use, and
recycling of minerals contribute significantly to the economic
well-being, security, and general welfare of the Nation;
(3) the industrialization of China and India has driven
demand for nonfuel mineral commodities, sparking a period of
resource nationalism exemplified by China's reduction and
stoppage of exports of rare-earth mineral elements necessary
for telecommunications, military technologies, medical devices,
agricultural production, and renewable energy technologies;
(4) the United States has vast mineral resources but is
becoming increasingly dependent upon foreign sources;
(5) 25 years ago the United States was dependent on foreign
sources for 30 nonfuel mineral materials, 6 of which were
entirely imported to meet the Nation's requirements and another
16 of which were imported to meet more than 60 percent of the
Nation's needs;
(6) by 2010, United States import dependence for nonfuel
mineral materials more than doubled from 30 to 67 commodities,
18 commodities were imported entirely to meet the Nation's
requirements, and another 25 commodities required imports of
more than 50 percent;
(7) the United States lacks a coherent national policy to
assure the availability of minerals essential to manufacturing,
national economic well-being and security, agricultural
production, and global economic competitiveness; and
(8) the Nation's ability to compete and innovate requires
proper planning and preparation today to meet tomorrow's
mineral needs.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL DECLARATION OF POLICY.
(a) In General.--It is the continuing policy of the United States
to promote an adequate and stable supply of minerals to maintain our
Nation's economic well-being, security, and manufacturing, industrial,
energy, agricultural, and technological capabilities.
(b) Policy Goals.--Implementation of the policy set forth in
subsection (a) requires that the Federal Government coordinate the
Federal departments and agencies responsible for ensuring that supply,
to--
(1) facilitate the availability, development, and
production of domestic mineral resources to meet national
needs, including the demands of the Nation's manufacturing and
agricultural industries;
(2) promote and encourage the development of economically
and environmentally sound, safe, and stable domestic mining,
minerals, metals, processing, and minerals recycling
industries;
(3) establish an assessment capability for identifying the
mineral demands, supply, and needs of our Nation; and
(4) minimize duplication, needless paperwork, and delays in
the administration of Federal and State laws and regulations,
and issuance of permits and authorizations necessary to
explore, develop, and produce minerals and construct and
operate mineral-related facilities.
SEC. 4. SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR REPORT ON ACCESS AND AUTHORIZATIONS
FOR MINERAL DEVELOPMENT.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior, through the
Bureau of Land Management and the United States Geological Survey, and
in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture (through the Forest
Service Mineral and Geology Management Division), the Secretary of
Defense, the Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of other appropriate
Federal agencies, shall prepare, submit to Congress, and make available
to the public a report that includes--
(1) an inventory of the nonfossil-fuel mineral potential of
lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management
and the Forest Service and an identification of all such lands
that have been withdrawn, segregated, or otherwise restricted
from mineral exploration and development;
(2) an assessment of--
(A) the mineral requirements to meet current and
emerging national security, economic, industrial
manufacturing, technological, agricultural, and social
needs;
(B) the Nation's reliance on foreign sources to
meet those needs; and
(C) the implications of mineral supply shortages or
disruptions;
(3) a detailed description of the time required to process
mineral applications, operating plans, leases, licenses,
permits, and other use authorizations for mineral-related
activities on lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of
Land Management and the Forest Service, and identification of
measures that would streamline the processing of such
applications, such as elimination of overlapping requirements
or set deadlines;
(4) an itemized list of all use authorizations referred to
in paragraph (3) for which applications are pending before the
Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service, and the
length of time each of those applications has been pending;
(5) an assessment of the impact of litigation on processing
or issuing mineral exploration and mine permits, identification
of the statutes the litigation was brought under, and the cost
to the agency or the Federal Government, including for payments
of attorney fees;
(6) an update of the 2009 Economic Impact of the Department
of the Interior's Programs and Activities report to include
locatable minerals;
(7) an assessment of the Federal workforce with educational
degrees and expertise in economic geology, geochemistry,
mining, industrial minerals, metallurgy, metallurgical
engineering, and mining engineering, including--
(A) retirement eligibility and agency plans for
retention, recruitment, and succession planning;
(B) comparison of the existing Federal salaries and
recruitment and retention bonuses with the salaries,
recruitment incentives, and retention packages normally
offered in the mineral industry; and
(C) examination of the differences between Federal
and private financial packages for early-, mid-, and
late-career workers; and
(8) an inventory of rare earth element potential on the
Federal lands, and impediments or restrictions on the
exploration or development of those rare earth elements, and
recommendations to lift the impediments or restrictions while
maintaining environmental safeguards.
(b) Progress Reports.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and each year thereafter for the following two
years, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit to Congress and make
available to the public a report that describes the progress made in
reaching the policy goals described in section 3(b), including--
(1) efforts to increase access to domestic supplies of
minerals, and facilitation of their production; and
(2) implementation of recommendations contained in--
(A) the National Research Council reports--
(i) Minerals, Critical Minerals, and the
U.S. Economy;
(ii) Managing Minerals for a Twenty-First
Century Military; and
(iii) the current workforce study
authorized in sections 385 and 1830 of the
Energy Policy Act of 2005 (119 Stat. 744,
1137);
(B) the Department of Energy Critical Materials
Strategy I and II; and
(C) the Department of Defense assessment and plan
for critical rare earth elements in defense
applications required under section 843 of the National
Defense Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2011.
SEC. 5. NATIONAL MINERAL ASSESSMENT.
For the first National Mineral Assessment conducted after the date
of enactment of this Act, the United States Geological Survey shall
include mineral assessments for those mineral commodities important to
the Nation's energy infrastructure, manufacturing and agricultural
industries, and to the national defense. Priority should be given to
minerals that are critical based on the impact of a potential supply
restriction and the likelihood of a supply restriction.
SEC. 6. GLOBAL MINERAL ASSESSMENT.
The United States Geological Survey is directed to expand the
current Global Mineral Assessment to include mineral assessments for
rare earth elements and other minerals that are critical based on the
impact of a potential supply restriction and the likelihood of a supply
restriction. Assessments conducted under this section shall include an
analysis, developed with participation by the National Minerals
Information Center and in consultation with appropriate agencies, of
the rare earth elements or other critical minerals supply chain and
associated processes and products, including mining, processing,
recycling, separation, metal production, alloy production, and
manufacturing of products sold to end users. In conducting the
assessment, the United States Geological Survey should coordinate with
the heads of foreign geologic surveys when possible.
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act--
(1) Inventory.--The term ``inventory'' means an accounting
of known mineral occurrences and mineral deposits, including
documentation of identified resources.
(2) Mineral assessment.--The term ``mineral assessment''
means an assessment of undiscovered mineral resources that
includes a qualitative assessment and a quantitative assessment
of such resources.
(3) Qualitative assessment.--The term ``qualitative
assessment'' means a geologic-based delineation (mapping) of
areas permissive for the occurrence of undiscovered mineral
resources, based on all available geotechnical data including
geology, geophysics, geochemistry, remote sensing, and mineral
localities data.
(4) Quantitative assessment.--The term ``quantitative
assessment'' means a probabilistic estimate of the quantity and
quality by tonnage and grade of undiscovered mineral resources
in areas delineated as permissive for occurrence in a
qualitative assessment.
SEC. 8. APPLICABILITY OF OTHER STATUTORY MINING POLICIES.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting any provision
of or requirement under the Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 (30
U.S.C. 21a).
Union Calendar No. 289
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 1063
[Report No. 113-390]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct an assessment of
the capability of the Nation to meet our current and future demands for
the minerals critical to United States manufacturing and agricultural
competitiveness and economic and national security in a time of
expanding resource nationalism, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
April 1, 2014
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union
and ordered to be printed