```

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9898 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9898

To amend the Department of Energy Organization Act to secure midstream 
       processing of critical materials, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 1, 2024

Mr. Guthrie (for himself, Mr. Fulcher, Mr. Newhouse, Mr. Bilirakis, Mr. 
  Bucshon, Mr. Pfluger, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. Wittman, Mr. Moore of 
Utah, Mr. Bacon, and Mrs. Miller-Meeks) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To amend the Department of Energy Organization Act to secure midstream 
       processing of critical materials, 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 ``Securing America's Midstream 
Critical Materials Processing of 2024''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) midstream separation, processing, refining, alloying, 
        concentration, smelting, and beneficiation of critical 
        materials represent a linchpin in efforts to secure domestic 
        supply chains and reduce our dependence on foreign adversaries;
            (2) unreasonable environmental regulations covering 
        midstream critical materials processors has deterred necessary 
        investment and driven industry towards foreign countries;
            (3) reshoring domestic industries and their supply chains 
        improves economic prosperity for American communities, creates 
        stable employment opportunities, and protects national security 
        interests;
            (4) our next generation economy and domestic manufacturing 
        industry will significantly increase demand for critical 
        material inputs;
            (5) the lack of sufficient domestic midstream critical 
        material processing capacity presents a vulnerability to our 
        economic and national security;
            (6) China and other geopolitical adversaries of the United 
        States have dominated critical material processing markets, 
        which represents a threat to America's next generation economy;
            (7) China and other geopolitical adversaries of the United 
        States purposefully exploit critical material processing 
        markets through unfair trade practices, such as dumping and 
        price manipulation, in an attempt to maintain their control and 
        undermine competing investment opportunities;
            (8) the United States needs to expand its technical 
        workforce expertise and experience in critical material 
        processing and address workforce challenges to bolster domestic 
        opportunities supported by a domestic supply chain for critical 
        materials;
            (9) foreign investment from allied nations and Free Trade 
        Agreement countries presents an opportunity to reshore domestic 
        midstream critical material processing capacity;
            (10) the challenges of navigating burdensome permitting 
        processes act as a hindrance to further investment in midstream 
        critical material processing capacity;
            (11) midstream critical material processing facilities 
        require access to reliable and affordable electricity and will 
        require increased generation and transmission infrastructure to 
        meet projected future demands; and
            (12) the United States retains some of the highest 
        environmental and labor standards compared to adversarial 
        nations that dominate the midstream critical material 
        processing industry, such as China.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL ROADMAP ON DOMESTIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR MIDSTREAM 
              CRITICAL MATERIAL PROCESSING.

    (a) In General.--In carrying out the requirements of the Department 
of Energy Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.), the Secretary of 
Energy, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the heads of 
other appropriate Federal agencies, representatives of the critical 
material processing industry, and members of academia covering critical 
materials processing industries, shall--
            (1) analyze and report to Congress regarding the current 
        state of midstream processing of critical materials; and
            (2) identify those places where the United States-based 
        supply chain for critical materials is insufficient to allow 
        for the appropriate and necessary development of United States-
        midstream processing of critical materials, including 
        opportunities for foreign direct investment from allied nations 
        and Free Trade Agreement countries.
    (b) Membership.--The Secretary of Energy shall convene an 
interagency task force comprised of--
            (1) the Secretary of Commerce;
            (2) the Secretary of the Treasury;
            (3) the Secretary of Defense;
            (4) the Secretary of State;
            (5) the Secretary of the Interior; and
            (6) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency.
    (c) Report Timing.--Not later than 1 year after the enactment of 
this Act, the task force shall issue the report required under 
subsection (a).
    (d) Report Contents.--The report required under subsection (a) 
shall include--
            (1) whether there is an adequate supply of critical 
        materials to meet current and projected domestic needs that be 
        processed in the United States;
            (2) the status of global midstream critical materials 
        processing industry;
            (3) the status of domestic midstream critical materials 
        processing industry, including its ability to handle the supply 
        described in paragraph (1);
            (4) an analysis of how and why the United States domestic 
        critical materials processing industry began and continues to 
        outsource operations to other countries;
            (5) a review of the existing regulatory and permitting 
        apparatus covering midstream critical materials processing 
        facilities, including requirements under the Clean Air Act (42 
        U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
        Liability, and Compensation Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et 
        seq.), and the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et 
        seq.), or other laws, and how regulatory compliance under these 
        requirements influence potential investments into new 
        facilities;
            (6) the economic impact of critical materials processing to 
        the overall United States economy and its welfare;
            (7) barriers to investment into domestic critical materials 
        processing, including--
                    (A) the workforce and educational needs of 
                expanding critical materials processing;
                    (B) infrastructure requirements to build out 
                critical materials processing; and
                    (C) permitting inefficiencies for domestic 
                midstream critical materials processing, including 
                compliance with the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et 
                seq.), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
                Liability, and Compensation Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 
                et seq.), and the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 
                6901 et seq.) and other relevant Federal laws;
            (8) the cost-effectiveness, growth potential, and viability 
        of secondary or alternative critical materials processing to 
        help meet expected domestic demand for processed critical 
        materials, including reprocessing or recycling of--
                    (A) coal or coal waste;
                    (B) mine tailings;
                    (C) post-consumer electronic waste devices;
                    (D) smelter and refinery slags and residuals; and
                    (E) materials or waste recovered from sites 
                designated as Superfunds pursuant to the Comprehensive 
                Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act 
                of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.);
            (9) a review of the existing efforts by the Department of 
        Energy's Office of Manufacturing and Energy, or other efforts 
        within the membership of the interagency task force convened 
        under subsection (b), to advancing secondary or alternative 
        critical materials processing;
            (10) how the expected trend in the demand for processed 
        critical materials is affected by the role that midstream 
        critical material processing in the United States plays in 
        aiding domestic manufacturing;
            (11) barriers to foreign direct investment from allied 
        nations and Free Trade Agreement countries into the United 
        States for critical material processing, including workforce 
        challenges, infrastructure needs, permitting timeframes, and 
        pricing transparency risks;
            (12) an identification and measure of the control the 
        Peoples' Republic of China and the Russian Federation have of 
        processed critical materials for countries that are parties 
        with the United States in a free trade agreement;
            (13) the national security implications posed to the United 
        States by continued control of midstream critical material 
        processing industry by the Peoples' Republic of China or other 
        geopolitical adversaries; and
            (14) any anti-competitive practices by the Peoples' 
        Republic of China and any other geopolitical adversaries of the 
        United States, and other non-market state owned enterprises to 
        control the midstream critical materials processing industry 
        by--
                    (A) depressing domestic prices through dumping 
                refined critical materials onto United States markets;
                    (B) manipulating critical material prices to 
                discourage United States investment and undermine long-
                term stability for United States markets;
                    (C) purposefully disrupting supply chains for 
                United States industries;
                    (D) manipulation of greenfield investment into Free 
                Trade Agreement countries; and
                    (E) establishment of commodity-specific trading 
                platforms to further entrench the Peoples' Republic of 
                China's market dominance.
    (e) Advisory Panel.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Energy shall establish an 
        advisory panel to provide input, technical analysis, and 
        feedback for and on the report required under subsection (a).
            (2) Membership.--The advisory panel shall include--
                    (A) 5 representatives from the domestic critical 
                materials processing industry, including--
                            (i) a diversity of processed critical 
                        materials; and
                            (ii) participants in critical material re-
                        processing or recycling; and
                    (B) 5 individuals from academia that have a 
                diversity of perspectives and relevant expertise in--
                            (i) in domestic critical materials 
                        processing industries; and
                            (ii) research into national security 
                        implications of the impact of the Peoples' 
                        Republic of China and other foreign 
                        adversaries' engaging in anti-competitive 
                        behaviors in the critical materials processing 
                        industry.
            (3) Meetings.--The advisory panel shall meet not less than 
        2 times before the task force issues the report required under 
        subsection (a).

SEC. 4. GAO REPORT.

    The Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
Congress a report regarding how current Federal policies and permitting 
processes inhibit investment in midstream critical materials 
processing, including--
            (1) how Public Law 117-169 (commonly known as the 
        ``Inflation Reduction Act'') may have affected greenfield 
        foreign-directed investments in free trade agreement countries 
        from the Peoples' Republic of China;
            (2) how regulations issued pursuant to the Clean Air Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) and the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 
        U.S.C. 6901 et seq.) or other relevant laws inhibit new 
        investments into midstream critical materials processing;
            (3) the role of regulation and permitting, including that 
        of litigation, in inhibiting and discouraging investment;
            (4) a review of--
                    (A) the effectiveness of Federal policies in 
                encouraging the utilization of secondary or alternative 
                critical materials sources, including material re-use, 
                recycling, and materials or waste recovered from sites 
                identified on the National Priorities List as subject 
                to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
                Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 
                et seq.); and
                    (B) whether Federal investments allow for 
                commercialization by private industry;
            (5) a review of the policies of comparable allied nations 
        that have midstream critical materials processing industries to 
        site, permit, and regulate facilities;
            (6) a review of the benefits to producers and consumers of 
        materials used in United States manufacturing and finished 
        goods, including--
                    (A) minerals included on the list published by the 
                United States Geological Survey pursuant to section 
                7002(c) of the Energy Act of 2020 (30 U.S.C. 1606(c));
                    (B) materials included on the list of critical 
                materials published by the Department of Energy 
                pursuant to section 7002(a) of the Energy Act of 2020 
                (30 U.S.C. 1606(a)); and
                    (C) materials of interest designated as such by the 
                Defense Logistics Agency; and
            (7) a review of the role of all Federal agencies engaged in 
        midstream critical materials processing and opportunities to 
        improve interagency collaboration and create synergies to 
        leverage individual expertise.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) Advisory panel.--The term ``advisory panel'' means the 
        advisory panel established under section 3(e).
            (2) Critical material.--The term ``critical material'' has 
        the meaning given the term in section 7002(a)(2) of the Energy 
        Act of 2020 (30 U.S.C. 1606(a)(2)).
            (3) Critical material processing.--The term ``critical 
        material processing'' means any process that transforms, 
        refines, separates, alloys, concentrates, smelts, or 
        beneficiates raw extracted critical materials into value added 
        inputs.
            (4) Task force.--The term ``task force'' means the 
        interagency task force convened under section 3(b).
                                 <all>
```