Hearings to examine S.362, to allow certain Federal minerals to be mined consistent with the Bull Mountains Mining Plan Modification, S.544, to provide for the location of multiple hardrock mining mill sites, to establish the Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund, S.596, to establish a pilot program to support domestic critical material processing, S.714, to amend the Energy Act of 2020 to include critical materials in the definition of critical mineral, S.789, to require reports on critical mineral and rare earth element resources around the world and a strategy for the development of advanced mining, refining, separation, and processing technologies, and S.859, to modify the requirements applicable to locatable minerals on public domain land.

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

2025-03-12

Source: Congress.gov

Summary

The committee convened a legislative hearing to review six bills pertaining to domestic mining and mineral processing, aiming to bolster the United States' critical mineral supply chain and diminish dependence on foreign entities. [ 00:07:33 ]

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 Discussions underscored the critical need for the U.S. to catch up in these sectors, particularly given global competition and national security implications. [ 00:08:48 ]

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 The session served as an initial step in building a legislative foundation to tackle these pressing challenges. [ 00:08:56 ]

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Themes

  • Securing Domestic Mineral Supply Chains The United States faces significant vulnerabilities due to its reliance on adversarial countries for essential minerals, impacting national security and economic stability. [ 00:11:41 ]

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     There is a strong consensus on the need to increase domestic extraction, processing, and recycling of minerals to reduce this dependence. Utah, for instance, possesses 40 of the 50 minerals deemed essential by the U.S. Geological Survey, highlighting domestic potential. Efforts to reshore critical mineral supply chains are crucial to counteract market manipulation and supply disruptions.

  • Permitting Reform and Regulatory Hurdles The process of developing new mines in the U.S. is plagued by extreme delays, with projects taking an average of 29 years from discovery to production, the second longest globally. Bureaucratic inefficiencies, inconsistent regulations, and high litigation risks, especially on federal lands, contribute to these prolonged timelines and deter investment. The Mining Regulatory Clarity Act (MRCA) was presented as a bipartisan solution to streamline the siting of essential mine support facilities and reduce legal uncertainty. Permitting on state or private land is generally quicker and subject to less litigation risk compared to federal processes, which often involve extensive National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews. [ 00:31:31 ]

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  • Addressing Legacy Mine Pollution Historic mining has left a legacy of environmental damage, with hundreds of thousands of abandoned hard rock mines contaminating rivers and streams across the West. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates the total liability for cleaning up these sites to be approximately $54 billion. [ 00:59:57 ]

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     While the recent Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hard Rock Mines Act offers a path forward, a significant impediment remains the absence of a dedicated, sustained funding source for cleanup efforts. A "reasonable net royalty" from current mining operations, earmarked for abandoned mine land reclamation, was proposed as a potential solution. [ 00:37:15 ]

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  • Policy Consistency and National Strategy The committee highlighted the urgent need for consistent and clear policies regarding critical minerals across federal agencies to attract private investment. The Critical Mineral Consistency Act was introduced to harmonize critical mineral lists between the Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy, addressing existing disparities that create confusion. Several speakers advocated for a more centralized national strategy, suggesting entities like a modern Bureau of Mines or a National Critical Minerals Council to improve coordination and ensure focus on mineral security and competitiveness. Additionally, there was discussion on strengthening the skilled workforce in mining and processing to support domestic industry growth.

Tone of the Meeting

The meeting largely maintained a collaborative and bipartisan tone, with members and witnesses acknowledging the shared challenges and the strategic importance of strengthening domestic critical mineral supply chains. [ 00:08:15 ]

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 A palpable sense of urgency underpinned the discussions, driven by concerns over national security and economic competitiveness in the face of global reliance on adversarial nations. While specific policy solutions, such as the nature of royalties or the extent of regulatory discretion, revealed different perspectives, there was a clear effort to identify common ground and seek legislative consensus. [ 00:09:13 ]

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 Some frustration was conveyed regarding bureaucratic delays and administrative hurdles that hinder domestic mining projects.

Participants

Transcript

Welcome to the committee's first legislative hearing of the 119th Congress.  Today we'll receive testimony on six bills listed in the notice for today's hearing.  All these bills address domestic mining and mineral processing, related reporting and public information.  Four of these measures have bipartisan co-sponsors and a fifth has received some bipartisan support.  Having served on this committee since 2011,   I'm keenly aware that the United States has fallen behind China and other nations when it comes to mining and mineral processing.  Today's hearing represents a first step in developing a legislative record on measures to address this very problem.  Of course, not all of us will support each measure on which the committee will hear testimony today.  I don't support all the bills listed on the notice for today's hearing.  For example, although I agree that America needs to process more   non-fuel minerals here at home.  And I appreciate that Senator Hickenlooper's bill, S-596, has Republican co-sponsors.  I've got strong reservations about the pilot program that this legislation would establish.  Also, I included Senator Lujan's bill, S-859, in today's hearing as a courtesy.  Senators Heinrich Weiden and Padilla are co-sponsors, along with a number of Democratic colleagues.   Today's hearing is reflective of my intent to sharpen the committee's focus on legislation without diminishing our other responsibilities to consider presidential nominations or to conduct oversight within our committee's jurisdiction.  We'll begin by moving pending nominations through the committee as soon as we have the requisite paperwork on these additional nominations.   I want to thank Ranking Member Heinrich and all the members of the committee for helping identify the six bills that we will receive testimony on this morning.
After I conclude my opening statement, we'll hear from Senator Heinrich for his opening statement and thereafter I'll introduce our distinguished panel of witnesses.  We'll hear the witness testimony and then move to a round of questions from members.  Members will have five minutes for their questions and will alternate between   senators on one side of the dais and then the other.  If you're here today, it's because you understand that America's economic strength and national security hinge ultimately on securing a reliable supply of key materials.  Currently, a majority of the world's mineral extraction and refinement are controlled by adversarial countries.  We've seen what happens when we rely on these nations for essential resources.   supply chain disruptions, economic vulnerabilities, and ultimately, tragically, national security risks.  It's time to fix that.  The resources are here, right here in the United States.  We just need the right policies in order for us to be able to unleash them.  My home state of Utah, for example, has 40 of the 50 minerals deemed essential by the U.S.  Geological Survey.  Yet bureaucratic delays and   inconsistent regulations create often insurmountable barriers to domestic production.  A 2024 S&P Global survey found that U.S.-based mineral projects take an average of 29 years to move from discovery to production.  That's the second longest timeline in the world.  To put that in perspective, if a mine were needed,   for defense applications during World War I using today's permitting timelines, it wouldn't be operational until after World War II had come to an end.  That is unacceptable.  It's one of the reasons why I've introduced the Critical Mineral Consistency Act with my colleague from Arizona, Senator Mark Kelly.
Right now, the Department of Energy and the Department of the Interior have separate, parallel, inconsistent lists of what counts as critical and what doesn't.   That doesn't make any sense.  In 2023, the Energy Department added copper to its list of critical materials, recognizing the metal as integral in energy technologies, but also at risk for supply disruptions by 2035.  But the U.S.  Geological Survey left copper off its own list, even though it's vital for power grids, wind turbines, and electric vehicles.   My bill would require these lists to match.  These designations send a powerful message to investors.  The U.S.  government is backing these supply chains on national security grounds.  If we want private investment in domestic production, we need clarity and we need consistency.  That's exactly why we need to pass

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