I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2467 

To provide that production of all locatable minerals from mining claims 

located under the general mining laws, or mineral concentrates or products derived from locatable minerals from such mining claims, shall 

be subject to a royalty of 12.5 percent of the gross income from mining, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 20, 2013 

Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. HOLT, and Mr. GRIJALVA) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To provide that production of all locatable minerals from 

mining claims located under the general mining laws, 

or mineral concentrates or products derived from 

locatable minerals from such mining claims, shall be 

subject to a royalty of 12.5 percent of the gross income 

from mining, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Abandoned Mine Lands Cleanup and Taxpayer Fairness 

6 Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—HARDROCK MINING REFORM 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Definitions and references. 

Sec. 103. Application rules. 

Subtitle A—Mineral Exploration and Development 

Sec. 111. Royalty. 

Sec. 112. Hardrock mining claim maintenance fee. 

Sec. 113. Effect of payments for use and occupancy of claims. 

Sec. 114. Limitation on patents. 

Subtitle B—Protection of Special Places 

Sec. 121. Lands open to location. 

Sec. 122. Withdrawal petitions by States, political subdivisions, and Indian 

tribes. 

Subtitle C—Environmental Considerations of Mineral Exploration and 

Development 

Sec. 131. General standard for hardrock mining on Federal land. 

Sec. 132. Permits. 

Sec. 133. Exploration permit. 

Sec. 134. Operations permit. 

Sec. 135. Persons ineligible for permits. 

Sec. 136. Financial assurance. 

Sec. 137. Operation and reclamation. 

Sec. 138. State law and regulation. 

Sec. 139. Limitation on the issuance of permits. 

Subtitle D—Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions 

Sec. 141. Policy functions. 

Sec. 142. User fees. 

Sec. 143. Inspection and monitoring. 

Sec. 144. Citizens suits. 

Sec. 145. Administrative and judicial review. 

Sec. 146. Enforcement. 

Sec. 147. Regulations. 

Sec. 148. Effective date. 

Sec. 149. Savings clause. 

Sec. 150. Availability of public records. 

Sec. 151. Miscellaneous powers. 

Sec. 152. Multiple mineral development and surface resources. 

Sec. 153. Mineral materials. 

TITLE II—ABANDONED MINE RECLAMATION 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Definitions and references. 


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Subtitle A—Hardrock Mining Reclamation 

Sec. 211. Displaced material reclamation fee. 

Sec. 212. Fees adjustments. 

Subtitle B—Abandoned Mine Cleanup Fund 

Sec. 221. Establishment of fund. 

Sec. 222. Use and objectives of the fund. 

Sec. 223. Eligible lands and waters. 

Subtitle C—Administrative Provisions 

Sec. 231. Effective date. 

Sec. 232. Fees adjustments. 

Sec. 233. Inspection and monitoring. 

Sec. 234. Regulations. 

Sec. 235. Availability of public records. 

1 TITLE I—HARDROCK MINING 

2 REFORM 

3 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Mining Reform and 

5 Deficit Reduction Act of 2013’’. 

6 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS AND REFERENCES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—As used in this title: 

8 (1) The term ‘‘affiliate’’ means with respect to 

9 any person, any of the following: 

10 (A) Any person who controls, is controlled 

11 by, or is under common control with such per12 son. 

13 (B) Any partner of such person. 

14 (C) Any person owning at least 10 percent 

15 of the voting shares of such person. 


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1 (2) The term ‘‘applicant’’ means any person ap2 plying for a permit under this title or a modification 

3 to or a renewal of a permit under this title. 

4 (3) The term ‘‘beneficiation’’ means the crush5 ing and grinding of locatable mineral ore and such 

6 processes as are employed to free the mineral from 

7 other constituents, including but not necessarily lim8 ited to, physical and chemical separation techniques. 

9 (4) The term ‘‘casual use’’— 

10 (A) subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), 

11 means mineral activities that do not ordinarily 

12 result in any disturbance of public lands and re13 sources; 

14 (B) includes collection of geochemical, 

15 rock, soil, or mineral specimens using 

16 handtools, hand panning, or nonmotorized sluic17 ing; and 

18 (C) does not include— 

19 (i) the use of mechanized earth-mov20 ing equipment, suction dredging, or explo21 sives; 

22 (ii) the use of motor vehicles in areas 

23 closed to off-road vehicles; 

24 (iii) the construction of roads or drill 

25 pads; and 


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1 (iv) the use of toxic or hazardous ma2 terials. 

3 (5) The term ‘‘claim holder’’ means a person 

4 holding a mining claim, millsite claim, or tunnel site 

5 claim located under the general mining laws and 

6 maintained in compliance with such laws and this 

7 title. Such term may include an agent of a claim 

8 holder. 

9 (6) The term ‘‘control’’ means having the abil10 ity, directly or indirectly, to determine (without re11 gard to whether exercised through one or more cor12 porate structures) the manner in which an entity 

13 conducts mineral activities, through any means, in14 cluding without limitation, ownership interest, au15 thority to commit the entity’s real or financial as16 sets, position as a director, officer, or partner of the 

17 entity, or contractual arrangement. 

18 (7) The term ‘‘exploration’’— 

19 (A) subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), 

20 means creating surface disturbance other than 

21 casual use, to evaluate the type, extent, quan22 tity, or quality of minerals present; 

23 (B) includes mineral activities associated 

24 with sampling, drilling, and analyzing locatable 

25 mineral values; and 


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1 (C) does not include extraction of mineral 

2 material for commercial use or sale. 

3 (8) The term ‘‘Federal land’’ means any land, 

4 and any interest in land, that is owned by the 

5 United States and open to location of mining claims 

6 under the general mining laws and subtitle B of this 

7 title. 

8 (9) The term ‘‘Indian lands’’ means lands held 

9 in trust for the benefit of an Indian tribe or indi10 vidual or held by an Indian tribe or individual sub11 ject to a restriction by the United States against 

12 alienation. 

13 (10) The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any Indian 

14 tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group 

15 or community, including any Alaska Native village 

16 or regional corporation as defined in or established 

17 pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

18 Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), that is recognized as 

19 eligible for the special programs and services pro20 vided by the United States to Indians because of 

21 their status as Indians. 

22 (11) The term ‘‘locatable mineral’’— 

23 (A) subject to subparagraph (B), means 

24 any mineral, the legal and beneficial title to 


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1 which remains in the United States and that is 

2 not subject to disposition under any of— 

3 (i) the Mineral Leasing Act (30 

4 U.S.C. 181 et seq.); 

5 (ii) the Geothermal Steam Act of 

6 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.); 

7 (iii) the Act of July 31, 1947, com8 monly known as the Materials Act of 1947 

9 (30 U.S.C. 601 et seq.); or 

10 (iv) the Mineral Leasing for Acquired 

11 Lands Act (30 U.S.C. 351 et seq.); and 

12 (B) does not include any mineral that is 

13 subject to a restriction against alienation im14 posed by the United States and is— 

15 (i) held in trust by the United States 

16 for any Indian or Indian tribe, as defined 

17 in section 2 of the Indian Mineral Develop18 ment Act of 1982 (25 U.S.C. 2101); or 

19 (ii) owned by any Indian or Indian 

20 tribe, as defined in that section. 

21 (12) The term ‘‘mineral activities’’ means any 

22 activity on a mining claim, millsite claim, or tunnel 

23 site claim for, related to, or incidental to, mineral 

24 exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, or rec25 lamation activities for any locatable mineral. 


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1 (13) The term ‘‘mining claim’’— 

2 (A) subject to subparagraph (B), means a 

3 claim located under the Mining Law of 1872 

4 within the boundaries of which exist locatable 

5 minerals the claimant intends to extract; 

6 (B) does not include a claim located for 

7 the purpose of securing Federal lands for a 

8 waste rock dump, tailings pile, or other pur9 poses incident to processing locatable minerals 

10 extracted elsewhere. 

11 (14) The term ‘‘National Conservation System 

12 unit’’ means any unit of the National Park System, 

13 National Wildlife Refuge System, National Wild and 

14 Scenic Rivers System, or National Trails System, or 

15 a National Conservation Area, a National Recreation 

16 Area, a National Monument, or any unit of the Na17 tional Wilderness Preservation System. 

18 (15) The term ‘‘operator’’ means any person 

19 proposing or authorized by a permit issued under 

20 this title to conduct mineral activities and any agent 

21 of such person. 

22 (16) The term ‘‘person’’ means an individual, 

23 Indian tribe, partnership, association, society, joint 

24 venture, joint stock company, firm, company, cor25 poration, cooperative, or other organization and any 


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1 instrumentality of State or local government includ2 ing any publicly owned utility or publicly owned cor3 poration of State or local government. 

4 (17) The term ‘‘processing’’ means processes 

5 downstream of beneficiation employed to prepare 

6 locatable mineral ore into the final marketable prod7 uct, including smelting and electrolytic refining. 

8 (18) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

9 of the Interior, unless otherwise specified. 

10 (19) The term ‘‘temporary cessation’’ means a 

11 halt in mine-related production activities for a con12 tinuous period of no longer than 5 years. 

13 (20) The term ‘‘undue degradation’’ means, 

14 based on consideration of other resource values that 

15 may be affected, the operation or proposed operation 

16 fails to comply with the performance standards in 

17 this title or can reasonably be expected to cause sig18 nificant environmental harm to wildlife; land, air, or 

19 water resources; or scientific or cultural resources. 

20 (21) The term ‘‘valid existing rights’’ means a 

21 mining claim or millsite claim located on lands de22 scribed in section 121(b), that— 

23 (A) was properly located and maintained 

24 under the general mining laws prior to the date 

25 of enactment of this Act; 


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1 (B) was supported by a discovery of a val2 uable mineral deposit within the meaning of the 

3 general mining laws on the date of enactment 

4 of this Act, and, for millsite claims, does not in5 volve more than one mill site for every mining 

6 claim located for that operation; and 

7 (C) continues to be valid under this title. 

8 (b) REFERENCES TO OTHER LAWS.— 

9 (1) Any reference in this title to the term gen10 eral mining laws is a reference to those Acts that 

11 generally comprise chapters 2, 12A, and 16, and sec12 tions 161 and 162, of title 30, United States Code. 

13 (2) Any reference in this title to the Act of July 

14 23, 1955, is a reference to the Act entitled ‘‘An Act 

15 to amend the Act of July 31, 1947 (61 Stat. 681) 

16 and the mining laws to provide for multiple use of 

17 the surface of the same tracts of the public lands, 

18 and for other purposes’’ (30 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 

19 SEC. 103. APPLICATION RULES. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—This title applies to any mining 

21 claim, millsite claim, or tunnel site claim located under 

22 the general mining laws, before, on, or after the date of 

23 enactment of this Act, except as provided in subsection 

24 (b). 

25 (b) PREEXISTING CLAIMS.— 


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1 (1) Any unpatented mining claim or millsite 

2 claim located under the general mining laws before 

3 the date of enactment of this Act for which a plan 

4 of operation has not been approved or a notice filed 

5 prior to the date of enactment shall, upon the effec6 tive date of this title, be subject to the requirements 

7 of this title, except as provided in paragraphs (2) 

8 and (3). 

9 (2)(A) If a plan of operations is approved for 

10 mineral activities on any claim or site referred to in 

11 paragraph (1) prior to the date of enactment of this 

12 Act but such operations have not commenced prior 

13 to the date of enactment of this Act— 

14 (i) during the 5-year period beginning 

15 on the date of enactment of this Act, min16 eral activities at such claim or site shall be 

17 subject to such plan of operations; 

18 (ii) during such 5-year period, modi19 fications of any such plan may be made in 

20 accordance with the provisions of law ap21 plicable prior to the enactment of this Act 

22 if such modifications are deemed minor by 

23 the Secretary concerned; and 


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1 (iii) the operator shall bring such min2 eral activities into compliance with this 

3 title by the end of such 5-year period. 

4 (B) Where an application for modification 

5 of a plan of operations referred to in subpara6 graph (A)(ii) has been timely submitted and an 

7 approved plan expires prior to Secretarial ac8 tion on the application, mineral activities and 

9 reclamation may continue in accordance with 

10 the terms of the expired plan until the Sec11 retary makes an administrative decision on the 

12 application. 

13 (c) FEDERAL LANDS SUBJECT TO EXISTING PER14 MIT.— 

15 (1) Any Federal land shall be subject to the re16 quirements of section 112(a)(2) if the land is— 

17 (A) subject to an operations permit; and 

18 (B) producing valuable locatable minerals 

19 in commercial quantities prior to the date of en20 actment of this Act. 

21 (2) Any Federal land added through a plan 

22 modification to an operations permit on Federal land 

23 that is submitted after the date of enactment of this 

24 Act shall be subject to the terms of section 

25 112(a)(3). 


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1 (d) APPLICATION OF TITLE TO BENEFICIATION AND

2 PROCESSING OF NON-FEDERAL MINERALS ON FEDERAL

3 LANDS.—The provisions of this title (including the envi4 ronmental protection requirements of subtitle C) shall 

5 apply in the same manner and to the same extent to min6 ing claims, millsite claims, and tunnel site claims used for 

7 beneficiation or processing activities or activities related 

8 to, or incidental to, such mineral activities for any mineral 

9 without regard to whether or not the legal and beneficial 

10 title to the mineral is held by the United States. This sub11 section applies only to minerals that are locatable minerals 

12 or minerals that would be locatable minerals if the legal 

13 and beneficial title to such minerals were held by the 

14 United States. 

15 Subtitle A—Mineral Exploration 

16 and Development 

17 SEC. 111. ROYALTY. 

18 (a) RESERVATION OF ROYALTY.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

20 production of all locatable minerals from any mining 

21 claim located under the general mining laws and 

22 maintained in compliance with this title, or mineral 

23 concentrates or products derived from locatable min24 erals from any such mining claim, as the case may 

25 be, shall be subject to a royalty of 12.5 percent of 


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1 the gross income from mining. The claim holder or 

2 any operator to whom the claim holder has assigned 

3 the obligation to make royalty payments under the 

4 claim and any person who controls such claim holder 

5 or operator shall be liable for payment of such royal6 ties. 

7 (2) FEDERAL LAND ADDED TO EXISTING OPER8 ATIONS PERMIT.—Any Federal land added through 

9 a plan modification to an operations permit that is 

10 submitted after the date of enactment of this Act 

11 shall be subject to the royalty that applies to Fed12 eral land under paragraph (1). 

13 (3) DEPOSIT.—Amounts received by the United 

14 States as royalties under this subsection shall be de15 posited into the Treasury. 

16 (b) DUTIES OF CLAIM HOLDERS, OPERATORS, AND

17 TRANSPORTERS.— 

18 (1) A person— 

19 (A) who is required to make any royalty 

20 payment under this section shall make such 

21 payments to the United States at such times 

22 and in such manner as the Secretary may by 

23 rule prescribe; and 

24 (B) shall notify the Secretary, in the time 

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1 retary, of any assignment that such person may 

2 have made of the obligation to make any roy3 alty or other payment under a mining claim. 

4 (2) Any person paying royalties under this sec5 tion shall file a written instrument, together with the 

6 first royalty payment, affirming that such person is 

7 responsible for making proper payments for all 

8 amounts due for all time periods for which such per9 son has a payment responsibility. Such responsibility 

10 for the periods referred to in the preceding sentence 

11 shall include any and all additional amounts billed 

12 by the Secretary and determined to be due by final 

13 agency or judicial action. Any person liable for roy14 alty payments under this section who assigns any 

15 payment obligation shall remain jointly and severally 

16 liable for all royalty payments due for the claim for 

17 the period. 

18 (3) A person conducting mineral activities 

19 shall— 

20 (A) develop and comply with the site secu21 rity provisions in the operations permit de22 signed to protect from theft the locatable min23 erals, concentrates or products derived there24 from which are produced or stored on a mining 

25 claim, and such provisions shall conform with 


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1 such minimum standards as the Secretary may 

2 prescribe by rule, taking into account the vari3 ety of circumstances on mining claims; and 

4 (B) not later than the 5th business day 

5 after production begins anywhere on a mining 

6 claim, or production resumes after more than 

7 90 days after production was suspended, notify 

8 the Secretary, in the manner prescribed by the 

9 Secretary, of the date on which such production 

10 has begun or resumed. 

11 (4) The Secretary may by rule require any per12 son engaged in transporting a locatable mineral, 

13 concentrate, or product derived there from to carry 

14 on his or her person, in his or her vehicle, or in his 

15 or her immediate control, documentation showing, at 

16 a minimum, the amount, origin, and intended des17 tination of the locatable mineral, concentrate, or 

18 product derived there from in such circumstances as 

19 the Secretary determines is appropriate. 

20 (c) RECORDKEEPING AND REPORTING REQUIRE21 MENTS.— 

22 (1) A claim holder, operator, or other person di23 rectly involved in developing, producing, processing, 

24 transporting, purchasing, or selling locatable min25 erals, concentrates, or products derived therefrom, 


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1 subject to this title, through the point of royalty 

2 computation shall establish and maintain any 

3 records, make any reports, and provide any informa4 tion that the Secretary may reasonably require for 

5 the purposes of implementing this section or deter6 mining compliance with rules or orders under this 

7 section. Such records shall include, but not be lim8 ited to, periodic reports, records, documents, and 

9 other data. Such reports may also include, but not 

10 be limited to, pertinent technical and financial data 

11 relating to the quantity, quality, composition volume, 

12 weight, and assay of all minerals extracted from the 

13 mining claim. Upon the request of any officer or em14 ployee duly designated by the Secretary conducting 

15 an audit or investigation pursuant to this section, 

16 the appropriate records, reports, or information that 

17 may be required by this section shall be made avail18 able for inspection and duplication by such officer or 

19 employee. Failure by a claim holder, operator, or 

20 other person referred to in the first sentence to co21 operate with such an audit, provide data required by 

22 the Secretary, or grant access to information may, 

23 at the discretion of the Secretary, result in involun24 tary forfeiture of the claim. 


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1 (2) Records required by the Secretary under 

2 this section shall be maintained for 7 years after re3 lease of financial assurance under section 136 unless 

4 the Secretary notifies the operator that the Sec5 retary has initiated an audit or investigation involv6 ing such records and that such records must be 

7 maintained for a longer period. In any case when an 

8 audit or investigation is underway, records shall be 

9 maintained until the Secretary releases the operator 

10 of the obligation to maintain such records. 

11 (d) AUDITS.—The Secretary is authorized to conduct 

12 such audits of all claim holders, operators, transporters, 

13 purchasers, processors, or other persons directly or indi14 rectly involved in the production or sales of minerals cov15 ered by this title, as the Secretary deems necessary for 

16 the purposes of ensuring compliance with the require17 ments of this section. For purposes of performing such 

18 audits, the Secretary shall, at reasonable times and upon 

19 request, have access to, and may copy, all books, papers 

20 and other documents that relate to compliance with any 

21 provision of this section by any person. 

22 (e) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.— 

23 (1) The Secretary is authorized to enter into 

24 cooperative agreements with the Secretary of Agri25 culture to share information concerning the royalty 


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1 management of locatable minerals, concentrates, or 

2 products derived therefrom, to carry out inspection, 

3 auditing, investigation, or enforcement (not includ4 ing the collection of royalties, civil or criminal pen5 alties, or other payments) activities under this sec6 tion in cooperation with the Secretary, and to carry 

7 out any other activity described in this section. 

8 (2) Except as provided in paragraph (3)(A) of 

9 this subsection (relating to trade secrets), and pur10 suant to a cooperative agreement, the Secretary of 

11 Agriculture shall, upon request, have access to all 

12 royalty accounting information in the possession of 

13 the Secretary respecting the production, removal, or 

14 sale of locatable minerals, concentrates, or products 

15 derived therefrom from claims on lands open to loca16 tion under this title. 

17 (3) Trade secrets, proprietary, and other con18 fidential information protected from disclosure under 

19 section 552 of title 5, United States Code, popularly 

20 known as the Freedom of Information Act, shall be 

21 made available by the Secretary to other Federal 

22 agencies as necessary to assure compliance with this 

23 title and other Federal laws. The Secretary, the Sec24 retary of Agriculture, the Administrator of the Envi25 ronmental Protection Agency, and other Federal ofVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:57 Jun 26, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2467.IH H2467

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1 ficials shall ensure that such information is provided 

2 protection in accordance with the requirements of 

3 that section. 

4 (f) INTEREST AND SUBSTANTIAL UNDERREPORTING

5 ASSESSMENTS.— 

6 (1) In the case of mining claims where royalty 

7 payments are not received by the Secretary on the 

8 date that such payments are due, the Secretary shall 

9 charge interest on such underpayments at the same 

10 interest rate as the rate applicable under section 

11 6621(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

12 In the case of an underpayment, interest shall be 

13 computed and charged only on the amount of the de14 ficiency and not on the total amount. 

15 (2) If there is any underreporting of royalty 

16 owed on production from a claim for any production 

17 month by any person liable for royalty payments 

18 under this section, the Secretary shall assess a pen19 alty of not greater than 25 percent of the amount 

20 of that underreporting. 

21 (3) For the purposes of this subsection, the 

22 term ‘‘underreporting’’ means the difference between 

23 the royalty on the value of the production that 

24 should have been reported and the royalty on the 

25 value of the production which was reported, if the 


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1 value that should have been reported is greater than 

2 the value that was reported. 

3 (4) The Secretary may waive or reduce the as4 sessment provided in paragraph (2) of this sub5 section if the person liable for royalty payments 

6 under this section corrects the underreporting before 

7 the date such person receives notice from the Sec8 retary that an underreporting may have occurred, or 

9 before 90 days after the date of the enactment of 

10 this section, whichever is later. 

11 (5) The Secretary shall waive any portion of an 

12 assessment under paragraph (2) of this subsection 

13 attributable to that portion of the underreporting for 

14 which the person responsible for paying the royalty 

15 demonstrates that— 

16 (A) such person had written authorization 

17 from the Secretary to report royalty on the 

18 value of the production on basis on which it was 

19 reported; 

20 (B) such person had substantial authority 

21 for reporting royalty on the value of the produc22 tion on the basis on which it was reported; 

23 (C) such person previously had notified the 

24 Secretary, in such manner as the Secretary may 

25 by rule prescribe, of relevant reasons or facts 


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1 affecting the royalty treatment of specific pro2 duction which led to the underreporting; or 

3 (D) such person meets any other exception 

4 which the Secretary may, by rule, establish. 

5 (g) EXPANDED ROYALTY OBLIGATIONS.—Each per6 son liable for royalty payments under this section shall 

7 be jointly and severally liable for royalty on all locatable 

8 minerals, concentrates, or products derived therefrom lost 

9 or wasted from a mining claim located under the general 

10 mining laws and maintained in compliance with this title 

11 when such loss or waste is due to negligence on the part 

12 of any person or due to the failure to comply with any 

13 rule, regulation, or order issued under this section. 

14 (h) GROSS INCOME FROM MINING DEFINED.—For 

15 the purposes of this section, for any locatable mineral, the 

16 term ‘‘gross income from mining’’ has the same meaning 

17 as the term ‘‘gross income’’ in section 613(c) of the Inter18 nal Revenue Code of 1986. 

19 (i) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The royalty under this sec20 tion shall take effect with respect to the production of 

21 locatable minerals after the enactment of this Act, but any 

22 royalty payments attributable to production during the 

23 first 12 calendar months after the enactment of this Act 

24 shall be payable at the expiration of such 12-month period. 


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1 (j) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ROYALTY REQUIRE2 MENTS.—Any person who fails to comply with the require3 ments of this section or any regulation or order issued to 

4 implement this section shall be liable for a civil penalty 

5 under section 109 of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty 

6 Management Act (30 U.S.C. 1719) to the same extent as 

7 if the claim located under the general mining laws and 

8 maintained in compliance with this title were a lease under 

9 that Act. 

10 (k) USE OF AMOUNTS FOR DEFICIT REDUCTION.— 

11 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any amounts 

12 received by the United States as royalties under this sec13 tion shall be deposited in the Treasury and used for Fed14 eral budget deficit reduction or, if there is no Federal 

15 budget deficit, for reducing the Federal debt in such man16 ner as the Secretary of the Treasury considers appro17 priate. 

18 SEC. 112. HARDROCK MINING CLAIM MAINTENANCE FEE. 

19 (a) FEE.— 

20 (1) Except as provided in section 2511(e)(2) of 

21 the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (relating to oil shale 

22 claims), for each unpatented mining claim, mill or 

23 tunnel site on federally owned lands, whether located 

24 before, on, or after enactment of this Act, each 

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1 gust 31 of each year, a claim maintenance fee of 

2 $200 per claim to hold such unpatented mining 

3 claim, mill or tunnel site for the assessment year be4 ginning at noon on the next day, September 1. Such 

5 claim maintenance fee shall be in lieu of the assess6 ment work requirement contained in the Mining Law 

7 of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 28 et seq.) and the related filing 

8 requirements contained in section 314(a) and (c) of 

9 the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 

10 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1744(a) and (c)). 

11 (2)(A) The Secretary shall adjust the fees re12 quired by this section to reflect changes in the Con13 sumer Price Index published by the Bureau of Labor 

14 Statistics of the Department of Labor every 5 years 

15 after the date of enactment of this Act, or more fre16 quently if the Secretary determines an adjustment to 

17 be reasonable. The Secretary shall employ the Con18 sumer Price Index for All-Urban Consumers pub19 lished by the Department of Labor as the basis for 

20 adjustment, and rounding according to the adjust21 ment process of conditions of the Federal Civil Pen22 alties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (104 Stat. 

23 890). 

24 (B) The Secretary shall provide claimants no25 tice of any adjustment made under this paragraph 


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1 not later than July 1 of any year in which the ad2 justment is made. 

3 (C) A fee adjustment under this paragraph 

4 shall begin to apply the calendar year following the 

5 calendar year in which it is made. 

6 (b) LOCATION.—Notwithstanding any provision of 

7 law, for every unpatented mining claim, mill or tunnel site 

8 located after the date of enactment of this Act the locator 

9 shall, at the time the location notice is recorded with the 

10 Bureau of Land Management, pay to the Secretary a loca11 tion fee, in addition to the fee required by subsection (a) 

12 of $50 per claim. 

13 (c) CO-OWNERSHIP.—The co-ownership provisions of 

14 the Mining Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 28 et seq.) will remain 

15 in effect except that the annual claim maintenance fee, 

16 where applicable, shall replace applicable assessment re17 quirements and expenditures. 

18 (d) FAILURE TO PAY.—Failure to pay the claim 

19 maintenance fee as required by subsection (a) shall conclu20 sively constitute a forfeiture of the unpatented mining 

21 claim, mill or tunnel site by the claimant and the claim 

22 shall be deemed null and void by operation of law. 

23 (e) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.— 

24 (1) Nothing in this section shall change or mod25 ify the requirements of section 314(b) of the Federal 


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1 Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 

2 U.S.C. 1744(b)), or the requirements of section 

3 314(c) of the Federal Land Policy and Management 

4 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1744(c)) related to filings 

5 required by section 314(b), which remain in effect. 

6 (2) Section 2324 of the Revised Statutes of the 

7 United States (30 U.S.C. 28) is amended by insert8 ing ‘‘or section 103(a) of the Mining Reform and 

9 Deficit Reduction Act of 2013’’ after ‘‘Act of 

10 1993,’’. 

11 SEC. 113. EFFECT OF PAYMENTS FOR USE AND OCCUPANCY 

12 OF CLAIMS. 

13 Timely payment of the claim maintenance fee re14 quired by section 112 of this title or any related law relat15 ing to the use of Federal land, preserves the claimant’s 

16 ability to use and occupy the Federal land concerned for 

17 prospecting and exploration, consistent with and subject 

18 to the requirements of this title and other applicable law. 

19 SEC. 114. LIMITATION ON PATENTS. 

20 (a) MINING CLAIMS.— 

21 (1) DETERMINATIONS REQUIRED.—After the 

22 date of enactment of this Act, no patent shall be 

23 issued by the United States for any mining claim lo24 cated under the general mining laws unless the Sec25 retary determines that, for the claim concerned— 


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1 (A) a patent application was filed with the 

2 Secretary on or before September 30, 1994; 

3 and 

4 (B) all requirements established under sec5 tions 2325 and 2326 of the Revised Statutes 

6 (30 U.S.C. 29 and 30) for vein or lode claims 

7 and sections 2329, 2330, 2331, and 2333 of 

8 the Revised Statutes (30 U.S.C. 35, 36, and 

9 37) for placer claims were fully complied with 

10 by that date. 

11 (2) RIGHT TO PATENT.—If the Secretary makes 

12 the determinations referred to in subparagraphs (A) 

13 and (B) of paragraph (1) for any mining claim, the 

14 holder of the claim shall be entitled to the issuance 

15 of a patent in the same manner and degree to which 

16 such claim holder would have been entitled to prior 

17 to the enactment of this Act, unless and until such 

18 determinations are withdrawn or invalidated by the 

19 Secretary or by a court of the United States. 

20 (b) MILLSITE CLAIMS.— 

21 (1) DETERMINATIONS REQUIRED.—After the 

22 date of enactment of this Act, no patent shall be 

23 issued by the United States for any millsite claim lo24 cated under the general mining laws unless the Sec25 retary determines that for the millsite concerned— 


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1 (A) a patent application for such land was 

2 filed with the Secretary on or before September 

3 30, 1994; and 

4 (B) all requirements applicable to such 

5 patent application were fully complied with by 

6 that date. 

7 (2) RIGHT TO PATENT.—If the Secretary makes 

8 the determinations referred to in subparagraphs (A) 

9 and (B) of paragraph (1) for any millsite claim, the 

10 holder of the claim shall be entitled to the issuance 

11 of a patent in the same manner and degree to which 

12 such claim holder would have been entitled to prior 

13 to the enactment of this Act, unless and until such 

14 determinations are withdrawn or invalidated by the 

15 Secretary or by a court of the United States. 

16 Subtitle B—Protection of Special 

17 Places 

18 SEC. 121. LANDS OPEN TO LOCATION. 

19 (a) LANDS OPEN TO LOCATION.—Except as provided 

20 in subsection (b), mining claims may be located under the 

21 general mining laws only on such lands and interests as 

22 were open to the location of mining claims under the gen23 eral mining laws immediately before the enactment of this 

24 Act. 


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1 (b) LANDS NOT OPEN TO LOCATION.—Notwith2 standing any other provision of law and subject to valid 

3 existing rights, each of the following shall not be open to 

4 the location of mining claims under the general mining 

5 laws on or after the date of enactment of this Act: 

6 (1) Wilderness study areas. 

7 (2) Areas of critical environmental concern. 

8 (3) Areas designated for inclusion in the Na9 tional Wild and Scenic Rivers System pursuant to 

10 the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (16 U.S.C. 1271 et 

11 seq.), areas designated for potential addition to such 

12 system pursuant to section 5(a) of that Act (16 

13 U.S.C. 1276(a)), and areas determined to be eligible 

14 for inclusion in such system pursuant to section 5(d) 

15 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1276(d)). 

16 (4) Any area identified in the set of inventoried 

17 roadless areas maps contained in the Forest Service 

18 Roadless Area Conservation Final Environmental 

19 Impact Statement, Volume 2, dated November 2000. 

20 (c) EXISTING AUTHORITY NOT AFFECTED.—Noth21 ing in this title limits the authority granted the Secretary 

22 in section 204 of the Federal Land Policy and Manage23 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1714) to withdraw public 

24 lands. 


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1 SEC. 122. WITHDRAWAL PETITIONS BY STATES, POLITICAL 

2 SUBDIVISIONS, AND INDIAN TRIBES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 

4 any State or political subdivision of a State or an Indian 

5 tribe may submit a petition to the Secretary for the with6 drawal of a specific tract of Federal land from the oper7 ation of the general mining laws, in order to protect spe8 cific values identified in the petition that are important 

9 to the State or political subdivision or Indian tribe. Such 

10 values may include the value of a watershed to supply 

11 drinking water, wildlife habitat value, cultural or historic 

12 resources, or value for scenic vistas important to the local 

13 economy, and other similar values. In the case of an In14 dian tribe, the petition may also identify religious or cul15 tural values that are important to the Indian tribe. The 

16 petition shall contain the information required by section 

17 204 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 

18 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1714). 

19 (b) CONSIDERATION OF PETITION.—The Secretary— 

20 (1) shall solicit public comment on the petition; 

21 (2) shall make a final decision on the petition 

22 within 180 days after receiving it; and 

23 (3) shall grant the petition subject to valid ex24 isting rights, unless the Secretary makes and pub25 lishes in the Federal Register specific findings why 


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1 a decision to grant the petition would be against the 

2 national interest. 

3 Subtitle C—Environmental Consid4 erations of Mineral Exploration 

5 and Development 

6 SEC. 131. GENERAL STANDARD FOR HARDROCK MINING ON 

7 FEDERAL LAND. 

8 Notwithstanding section 302(b) of the Federal Land 

9 Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1732(b)), 

10 the first section of the Act of June 4, 1897 (chapter 2; 

11 30 Stat. 36 16 U.S.C. 478), and the National Forest Man12 agement Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.), and in 

13 accordance with this subtitle and applicable law, unless ex14 pressly stated otherwise in this title, the Secretary— 

15 (1) shall ensure that mineral activities on any 

16 Federal land that is subject to a mining claim, mill17 site claim, or tunnel site claim is carefully controlled 

18 to prevent undue degradation of public lands and re19 sources; and 

20 (2) shall not grant permission to engage in min21 eral activities if the Secretary, after considering the 

22 evidence, determines that undue degradation would 

23 result from such activities. 


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1 SEC. 132. PERMITS. 

2 (a) PERMITS REQUIRED.—No person may engage in 

3 mineral activities on Federal land that may cause a dis4 turbance of surface resources, including land, air, ground 

5 water and surface water, and fish and wildlife, unless— 

6 (1) the claim was properly located under the 

7 general mining laws and maintained in compliance 

8 with such laws and this title; and 

9 (2) a permit was issued to such person under 

10 this subtitle authorizing such activities. 

11 (b) NEGLIGIBLE DISTURBANCE.—Notwithstanding 

12 subsection (a)(2), a permit under this subtitle shall not 

13 be required for mineral activities that are a casual use of 

14 the Federal land. 

15 (c) COORDINATION WITH NEPA PROCESS.—The 

16 Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture shall conduct 

17 the permit processes under this title in coordination with 

18 the timing and other requirements under section 102 of 

19 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

20 4332). 

21 SEC. 133. EXPLORATION PERMIT. 

22 (a) AUTHORIZED EXPLORATION ACTIVITY.—Any 

23 claim holder may apply for an exploration permit for any 

24 mining claim authorizing the claim holder to remove a rea25 sonable amount of the locatable minerals from the claim 

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1 thorize the claim holder to remove any mineral for sale 

2 nor to conduct any activities other than those required for 

3 exploration for locatable minerals and reclamation. 

4 (b) PERMIT APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An ap5 plication for an exploration permit under this section shall 

6 be submitted in a manner satisfactory to the Secretary 

7 or, for National Forest System lands, the Secretary of Ag8 riculture, and shall contain an exploration plan, a reclama9 tion plan for the proposed exploration, and such docu10 mentation as necessary to ensure compliance with applica11 ble Federal and State environmental laws and regulations. 

12 (c) RECLAMATION PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—The rec13 lamation plan required to be included in a permit applica14 tion under subsection (b) shall include such provisions as 

15 may be jointly prescribed by the Secretary and the Sec16 retary of Agriculture. 

17 (d) PERMIT ISSUANCE OR DENIAL.—The Secretary, 

18 or for National Forest System lands, the Secretary of Ag19 riculture, shall issue an exploration permit pursuant to an 

20 application under this section unless such Secretary makes 

21 any of the following determinations: 

22 (1) The permit application, the exploration plan 

23 and reclamation plan are not complete and accurate. 

24 (2) The applicant has not demonstrated that 

25 proposed reclamation can be accomplished. 


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1 (3) The proposed exploration activities and con2 dition of the land after the completion of exploration 

3 activities and final reclamation would not conform 

4 with the land use plan applicable to the area subject 

5 to mineral activities. 

6 (4) The area subject to the proposed permit is 

7 included within an area not open to location under 

8 section 121. 

9 (5) The applicant has not demonstrated that 

10 the exploration plan and reclamation plan will be in 

11 compliance with the requirements of this title and all 

12 other applicable Federal requirements, and any 

13 State requirements agreed to by the Secretary of the 

14 Interior (or Secretary of Agriculture, as appro15 priate). 

16 (6) The applicant has not demonstrated that 

17 the requirements of section 136 (relating to financial 

18 assurance) will be met. 

19 (7) The applicant is ineligible to receive a per20 mit as determined under section 135. 

21 (e) TERM OF PERMIT.—An exploration permit shall 

22 be for a stated term. The term shall be no greater than 

23 that necessary to accomplish the proposed exploration, 

24 and in no case for more than 10 years. 


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1 (f) PERMIT MODIFICATION.—During the term of an 

2 exploration permit, the permit holder may submit an ap3 plication to modify the permit. To approve a proposed 

4 modification to the permit, the Secretary concerned shall 

5 make the same determinations as are required in the case 

6 of an original permit, except that the Secretary and the 

7 Secretary of Agriculture may specify by joint rule the ex8 tent to which requirements for initial exploration permits 

9 under this section shall apply to applications to modify 

10 an exploration permit based on whether such modifications 

11 are deemed significant or minor. 

12 (g) TRANSFER, ASSIGNMENT, OR SALE OF

13 RIGHTS.— 

14 (1) No transfer, assignment, or sale of rights 

15 granted by a permit issued under this section shall 

16 be made without the prior written approval of the 

17 Secretary or for National Forest System lands, the 

18 Secretary of Agriculture. 

19 (2) Such Secretary shall allow a person holding 

20 a permit to transfer, assign, or sell rights under the 

21 permit to a successor, if the Secretary finds, in writ22 ing, that the successor— 

23 (A) is eligible to receive a permit in ac24 cordance with section 134(d); 


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1 (B) has submitted evidence of financial as2 surance satisfactory under section 136; and 

3 (C) meets any other requirements specified 

4 by the Secretary. 

5 (3) The successor in interest shall assume the 

6 liability and reclamation responsibilities established 

7 by the existing permit and shall conduct the mineral 

8 activities in full compliance with this title, and the 

9 terms and conditions of the permit as in effect at 

10 the time of transfer, assignment, or sale. 

11 (4) Each application for approval of a permit 

12 transfer, assignment, or sale pursuant to this sub13 section shall be accompanied by a fee payable to the 

14 Secretary of the Interior in such amount as may be 

15 established by such Secretary. Such amount shall be 

16 equal to the actual or anticipated cost to the Sec17 retary or the Secretary of Agriculture, as appro18 priate, of reviewing and approving or disapproving 

19 such transfer, assignment, or sale, as determined by 

20 the Secretary of the Interior. 

21 SEC. 134. OPERATIONS PERMIT. 

22 (a) OPERATIONS PERMIT.— 

23 (1) Any claim holder that is in compliance with 

24 the general mining laws and section 113 of this title 

25 may apply to the Secretary, or for National Forest 


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1 System lands, the Secretary of Agriculture, for an 

2 operations permit authorizing the claim holder to 

3 carry out mineral activities, other than casual use, 

4 on— 

5 (A) any valid mining claim, valid millsite 

6 claim, or valid tunnel site claim; and 

7 (B) such additional Federal land as the 

8 Secretary may determine is necessary to con9 duct the proposed mineral activities, if the oper10 ator obtains a right-of-way permit for use of 

11 such additional lands under title V of the Fed12 eral Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 

13 (43 U.S.C. 1761 et seq.) and agrees to pay all 

14 fees required under that title for the permit 

15 under that title. 

16 (2) If the Secretary decides to issue such permit, the 

17 permit shall include such terms and conditions as pre18 scribed by such Secretary to carry out this subtitle. 

19 (b) PERMIT APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An ap20 plication for an operations permit under this section shall 

21 be submitted in a manner satisfactory to the Secretary 

22 concerned and shall contain site characterization data, an 

23 operations plan, a reclamation plan, monitoring plans, 

24 long-term maintenance plans, to the extent necessary, and 

25 such documentation as necessary to ensure compliance 


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1 with applicable Federal and State environmental laws and 

2 regulations. If the proposed mineral activities will be car3 ried out in conjunction with mineral activities on adjacent 

4 non-Federal lands, information on the location and nature 

5 of such operations may be required by the Secretary. 

6 (c) PERMIT ISSUANCE OR DENIAL.— 

7 (1) After providing for public participation pur8 suant to subsection (i), the Secretary, or for Na9 tional Forest System lands the Secretary of Agri10 culture, shall issue an operations permit if such Sec11 retary makes each of the following determinations in 

12 writing, and shall deny a permit if such Secretary 

13 finds that the application and applicant do not fully 

14 meet the following requirements: 

15 (A) The permit application, including the 

16 site characterization data, operations plan, and 

17 reclamation plan, are complete and accurate 

18 and sufficient for developing a good under19 standing of the anticipated impacts of the min20 eral activities and the effectiveness of proposed 

21 mitigation and control. 

22 (B) The applicant has demonstrated that 

23 the proposed reclamation in the operation and 

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1 complished by the applicant and will not cause 

2 undue degradation. 

3 (C) The condition of the land, including 

4 the fish and wildlife resources and habitat con5 tained thereon, after the completion of mineral 

6 activities and final reclamation, will conform to 

7 the land use plan applicable to the area subject 

8 to mineral activities and are returned to a pro9 ductive use. 

10 (D) The area subject to the proposed plan 

11 is open to location for the types of mineral ac12 tivities proposed. 

13 (E) The proposed operation has been de14 signed to prevent material damage to the hy15 drologic balance. 

16 (F) The applicant will fully comply with 

17 the requirements of section 136 (relating to fi18 nancial assurance) prior to the initiation of op19 erations. 

20 (G) Neither the applicant nor operator, nor 

21 any subsidiary, affiliate, or person controlled by 

22 or under common control with the applicant or 

23 operator, is ineligible to receive a permit under 

24 section 135. 


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1 (H) The reclamation plan demonstrates 

2 that 10 years following mine closure, no treat3 ment of surface or ground water will be re4 quired to meet water quality standards at the 

5 point of discharge. 

6 (2) With respect to any activities specified in 

7 the reclamation plan referred to in subsection (b) 

8 that constitutes a removal or remedial action under 

9 section 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental 

10 Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 

11 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.), the Secretary shall consult 

12 with the Administrator of the Environmental Protec13 tion Agency prior to the issuance of an operations 

14 permit. The Administrator shall ensure that the rec15 lamation plan does not require activities that would 

16 increase the costs or likelihood of removal or reme17 dial actions under the Comprehensive Environmental 

18 Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 

19 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) or corrective actions under 

20 the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6901 et 

21 seq.). 

22 (d) TERM OF PERMIT; RENEWAL.— 

23 (1) An operations permit— 

24 (A) shall be for a term that is no longer 

25 than the shorter of— 


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1 (i) the period necessary to accomplish 

2 the proposed mineral activities subject to 

3 the permit; and 

4 (ii) 20 years; and 

5 (B) shall be renewed for an additional 20- 

6 year period if the operation is in compliance 

7 with the requirements of this title and other ap8 plicable law. 

9 (2) Failure by the operator to commence min10 eral activities within 2 years of the date scheduled 

11 in an operations permit shall require a modification 

12 of the permit if the Secretary concerned determines 

13 that modifications are necessary to comply with sec14 tion 121. 

15 (e) PERMIT MODIFICATION.— 

16 (1) During the term of an operations permit 

17 the operator may submit an application to modify 

18 the permit (including the operations plan or rec19 lamation plan, or both). 

20 (2) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys21 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, may, at any 

22 time, require reasonable modification to any oper23 ations plan or reclamation plan upon a determina24 tion that the requirements of this title cannot be met 

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1 tion shall be based on a written finding and subject 

2 to public notice and hearing requirements estab3 lished by the Secretary concerned. 

4 (3) A permit modification is required before 

5 changes are made to the approved plan of oper6 ations, or if unanticipated events or conditions exist 

7 on the mine site, including in the case of— 

8 (A) development of acid or toxic drainage; 

9 (B) loss of springs or water supplies; 

10 (C) water quantity, water quality, or other 

11 resulting water impacts that are significantly 

12 different than those predicted in the applica13 tion; 

14 (D) the need for long-term water treat15 ment; 

16 (E) significant reclamation difficulties or 

17 reclamation failure; 

18 (F) the discovery of significant scientific, 

19 cultural, or biological resources that were not 

20 addressed in the original plan; or 

21 (G) the discovery of hazards to public safe22 ty. 

23 (f) TEMPORARY CESSATION OF OPERATIONS.— 

24 (1) An operator conducting mineral activities 

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1 title may not temporarily cease mineral activities for 

2 a period greater than 180 days unless the Secretary 

3 concerned has approved such temporary cessation or 

4 unless the temporary cessation is permitted under 

5 the original permit. Any operator temporarily ceas6 ing mineral activities for a period greater than 90 

7 days under an operations permit issued before the 

8 date of the enactment of this Act shall submit, be9 fore the expiration of such 90-day period, a complete 

10 application for temporary cessation of operations to 

11 the Secretary concerned for approval unless the tem12 porary cessation is permitted under the original per13 mit. 

14 (2) An application for approval of temporary 

15 cessation of operations shall include such informa16 tion required under subsection (b) and any other 

17 provisions prescribed by the Secretary concerned to 

18 minimize impacts on the environment. After receipt 

19 of a complete application for temporary cessation of 

20 operations such Secretary shall conduct an inspec21 tion of the area for which temporary cessation of op22 erations has been requested. 

23 (3) To approve an application for temporary 

24 cessation of operations, the Secretary concerned 

25 shall make each of the following determinations: 


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1 (A) A determination that the methods for 

2 securing surface facilities and restricting access 

3 to the permit area, or relevant portions thereof, 

4 will effectively ensure against hazards to the 

5 health and safety of the public and fish and 

6 wildlife. 

7 (B) A determination that reclamation is in 

8 compliance with the approved reclamation plan, 

9 except in those areas specifically designated in 

10 the application for temporary cessation of oper11 ations for which a delay in meeting such stand12 ards is necessary to facilitate the resumption of 

13 operations. 

14 (C) A determination that the amount of fi15 nancial assurance filed with the permit applica16 tion is sufficient to assure completion of the 

17 reclamation activities identified in the approved 

18 reclamation plan in the event of forfeiture. 

19 (D) A determination that any outstanding 

20 notices of violation and cessation orders in21 curred in connection with the plan for which 

22 temporary cessation is being requested are ei23 ther stayed pursuant to an administrative or ju24 dicial appeal proceeding or are in the process of 


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1 being abated to the satisfaction of the Secretary 

2 concerned. 

3 (g) PERMIT REVIEWS.—The Secretary, or for Na4 tional Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, 

5 shall review each permit issued under this section every 

6 10 years during the term of such permit, shall provide 

7 public notice of the permit review, and, based upon a writ8 ten finding, such Secretary shall require the operator to 

9 take such actions as the Secretary deems necessary to as10 sure that mineral activities conform to the permit, includ11 ing adjustment of financial assurance requirements. 

12 (h) TRANSFER, ASSIGNMENT, OR SALE OF

13 RIGHTS.— 

14 (1) No transfer, assignment, or sale of rights 

15 granted by a permit under this section shall be made 

16 without the prior written approval of the Secretary, 

17 or for National Forest System lands the Secretary 

18 of Agriculture. 

19 (2) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys20 tem lands, the Secretary of Agriculture, may allow 

21 a person holding a permit to transfer, assign, or sell 

22 rights under the permit to a successor, if such Sec23 retary finds, in writing, that the successor— 


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1 (A) has submitted information required 

2 and is eligible to receive a permit in accordance 

3 with section 135; 

4 (B) has submitted evidence of financial as5 surance satisfactory under section 136; and 

6 (C) meets any other requirements specified 

7 by such Secretary. 

8 (3) The successor in interest shall assume rec9 lamation and other responsibilities established by the 

10 existing permit and shall conduct the mineral activi11 ties in full compliance with this title, and the terms 

12 and conditions of the permit as in effect at the time 

13 of transfer, assignment, or sale. 

14 (4) Each application for approval of a permit 

15 transfer, assignment, or sale pursuant to this sub16 section shall be accompanied by a fee payable to the 

17 Secretary of the Interior, or for National Forest 

18 System lands, the Secretary of Agriculture, in such 

19 amount as may be established by such Secretary, or 

20 for National Forest System lands, by the Secretary 

21 of Agriculture. Such amount shall be equal to the 

22 actual or anticipated cost to the Secretary or, for 

23 National Forest System lands, to the Secretary of 

24 Agriculture, of reviewing and approving or disVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:57 Jun 26, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2467.IH H2467

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1 approving such transfer, assignment, or sale, as de2 termined by such Secretary. 

3 (i) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—The Secretary of the 

4 Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall jointly pro5 mulgate regulations to ensure transparency and public 

6 participation in permit decisions required under this title, 

7 consistent with any requirements that apply to such deci8 sions under section 102 of the National Environmental 

9 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332). 

10 SEC. 135. PERSONS INELIGIBLE FOR PERMITS. 

11 (a) CURRENT VIOLATIONS.—Unless corrective action 

12 has been taken in accordance with subsection (c), no per13 mit under this subtitle shall be issued or transferred to 

14 an applicant if the applicant or any agent of the applicant, 

15 the operator (if different than the applicant) of the claim 

16 concerned, any claim holder (if different than the appli17 cant) of the claim concerned, or any affiliate or officer 

18 or director of the applicant is currently in violation of any 

19 of the following: 

20 (1) A provision of this title or any regulation 

21 under this title. 

22 (2) An applicable State or Federal toxic sub23 stance, solid waste, air, water quality, or fish and 

24 wildlife conservation law or regulation at any site 


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1 where mining, beneficiation, or processing activities 

2 are occurring or have occurred. 

3 (3) The Surface Mining Control and Reclama4 tion Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.) or any 

5 regulation implementing that Act at any site where 

6 surface coal mining operations have occurred or are 

7 occurring. 

8 (b) SUSPENSION.—The Secretary, or for National 

9 Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall 

10 suspend an operations permit, in whole or in part, if such 

11 Secretary determines that any of the entities described in 

12 subsection (a) were in violation of any requirement listed 

13 in subsection (a) at the time the permit was issued. 

14 (c) CORRECTION.— 

15 (1) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys16 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, may issue or 

17 reinstate a permit under this subtitle if the applicant 

18 submits proof that the violation referred to in sub19 section (a) or (b) has been corrected or is in the 

20 process of being corrected to the satisfaction of such 

21 Secretary and the regulatory authority involved or if 

22 the applicant submits proof that the violator has 

23 filed and is presently pursuing, a direct administra24 tive or judicial appeal to contest the existence of the 

25 violation. For purposes of this section, an appeal of 


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1 any applicant’s relationship to an affiliate shall not 

2 constitute a direct administrative or judicial appeal 

3 to contest the existence of the violation. 

4 (2) Any permit which is issued or reinstated 

5 based upon proof submitted under this subsection 

6 shall be conditionally approved or conditionally rein7 stated, as the case may be. If the violation is not 

8 successfully abated or the violation is upheld on ap9 peal, the permit shall be suspended or revoked. 

10 (d) PATTERN OF WILLFUL VIOLATIONS.—No permit 

11 under this title may be issued to any applicant if there 

12 is a demonstrated pattern of willful violations of the envi13 ronmental protection requirements of this title by the ap14 plicant, any affiliate of the applicant, or the operator or 

15 claim holder if different than the applicant. 

16 SEC. 136. FINANCIAL ASSURANCE. 

17 (a) FINANCIAL ASSURANCE REQUIRED.— 

18 (1) Subject to public notice and comment, and 

19 after a permit is issued under this subtitle and be20 fore any exploration or operations begin under the 

21 permit, the operator shall file with the Secretary, or 

22 for National Forest System lands the Secretary of 

23 Agriculture, evidence of financial assurance payable 

24 to the United States. The financial assurance shall 

25 be provided in the form of a surety bond, a trust 


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1 fund, letters of credits, government securities, cer2 tificates of deposit, cash, or an equivalent form ap3 proved by such Secretary. 

4 (2) The financial assurance shall cover all lands 

5 within the initial permit area and all affected waters 

6 that may require restoration, treatment, or other 

7 management as a result of mineral activities, and 

8 shall be extended to cover all lands and waters 

9 added pursuant to any permit modification made 

10 under section 133(f) (relating to exploration per11 mits) or section 134(e) (relating to operations per12 mits), or affected by mineral activities. 

13 (b) AMOUNT.—The amount of the financial assur14 ance required under this section shall be sufficient to as15 sure the completion of reclamation and restoration satis16 fying the requirements of this title if the work were to 

17 be performed by the Secretary concerned in the event of 

18 forfeiture, including the construction and maintenance 

19 costs for any treatment facilities necessary to meet Fed20 eral and State environmental requirements. The calcula21 tion of such amount shall take into account the maximum 

22 level of financial exposure which shall arise during the 

23 mineral activity and administrative costs associated with 

24 a government agency reclaiming the site. 


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1 (c) DURATION.—The financial assurance required 

2 under this section shall be held for the duration of the 

3 mineral activities and for an additional period to cover the 

4 operator’s responsibility for reclamation, restoration, and 

5 long-term maintenance, and effluent treatment as speci6 fied in subsection (g). 

7 (d) ADJUSTMENTS.—The amount of the financial as8 surance and the terms of the acceptance of the assurance 

9 may be adjusted by the Secretary concerned from time to 

10 time as the area requiring coverage is increased or de11 creased, or where the costs of reclamation or treatment 

12 change, or pursuant to section 134(f) (relating to tem13 porary cessation of operations), but the financial assur14 ance shall otherwise be in compliance with this section. 

15 The Secretary concerned shall review the financial guar16 antee every 3 years and as part of the permit application 

17 review under section 134(c). 

18 (e) RELEASE.—Upon request, and after notice and 

19 opportunity for public comment, and after inspection by 

20 the Secretary, or for National Forest System lands, the 

21 Secretary of Agriculture, such Secretary may, after con22 sultation with the Administrator of the Environmental 

23 Protection Agency, release in whole or in part the financial 

24 assurance required under this section if the Secretary 

25 makes both of the following determinations: 


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1 (1) A determination that reclamation or res2 toration covered by the financial assurance has been 

3 accomplished as required by this title. 

4 (2) A determination that the terms and condi5 tions of any other applicable Federal requirements, 

6 and State requirements applicable pursuant to coop7 erative agreements under section 138, have been ful8 filled. 

9 (f) RELEASE SCHEDULE.—The release referred to in 

10 subsection (e) shall be according to the following schedule: 

11 (1) After the operator has completed any re12 quired backfilling, regrading, and drainage control of 

13 an area subject to mineral activities and covered by 

14 the financial assurance, and has commenced revege15 tation on the regraded areas subject to mineral ac16 tivities in accordance with the approved plan, that 

17 portion of the total financial assurance secured for 

18 the area subject to mineral activities attributable to 

19 the completed activities may be released except that 

20 sufficient assurance must be retained to address 

21 other required reclamation and restoration needs 

22 and to assure the long-term success of the revegeta23 tion. 

24 (2) After the operator has completed success25 fully all remaining mineral activities and reclamation 


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1 activities and all requirements of the operations plan 

2 and the reclamation plan, and all other requirements 

3 of this title have been fully met, including the re4 quirements of subsection (g) of this section, the re5 maining portion of the financial assurance may be 

6 released. 

7 During the period following release of the financial assur8 ance as specified in paragraph (1), until the remaining 

9 portion of the financial assurance is released as provided 

10 in paragraph (2), the operator shall be required to comply 

11 with the permit issued under this subtitle. 

12 (g) EFFLUENT.—Notwithstanding section 137(b)(4), 

13 where any discharge or other water-related condition re14 sulting from the mineral activities requires treatment in 

15 order to meet the applicable effluent limitations and water 

16 quality standards, the financial assurance shall include the 

17 estimated cost of maintaining such treatment for the pro18 jected period that will be needed after the cessation of 

19 mineral activities. The portion of the financial assurance 

20 attributable to such estimated cost of treatment shall not 

21 be released until the discharge has ceased for a period of 

22 5 years, as determined by ongoing monitoring and testing, 

23 or, if the discharge continues, until the operator has met 

24 all applicable effluent limitations and water quality stand25 ards for 5 full years without treatment. 


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1 (h) ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS.—If the Secretary, 

2 or for National Forest System lands, the Secretary of Ag3 riculture, determines, after final release of financial assur4 ance, that an environmental hazard resulting from the 

5 mineral activities exists, or the terms and conditions of 

6 the explorations or operations permit of this title were not 

7 fulfilled in fact at the time of release, such Secretary shall 

8 issue an order under section 146 requiring the claim hold9 er or operator (or any person who controls the claim hold10 er or operator) to correct the condition such that applica11 ble laws and regulations and any conditions from the plan 

12 of operations are met. 

13 SEC. 137. OPERATION AND RECLAMATION. 

14 (a) GENERAL RULE.— 

15 (1) The operator shall restore lands subject to 

16 mineral activities carried out under a permit issued 

17 under this subtitle to a condition capable of sup18 porting— 

19 (A) the uses which such lands were capable 

20 of supporting prior to surface disturbance by 

21 the operator, or 

22 (B) other beneficial uses which conform to 

23 applicable land use plans as determined by the 

24 Secretary, or for National Forest System lands, 

25 the Secretary of Agriculture. 


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1 (2) Reclamation shall proceed as contempora2 neously as practicable with the conduct of mineral 

3 activities. In the case of a cessation of mineral ac4 tivities beyond that provided for as a temporary ces5 sation under this title, reclamation activities shall 

6 begin immediately. 

7 (b) OPERATION AND RECLAMATION STANDARDS.— 

8 The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agri9 culture shall jointly promulgate regulations that establish 

10 operation and reclamation standards for mineral activities 

11 permitted under this title. The Secretaries may determine 

12 whether outcome-based performance standards or tech13 nology-based design standards are most appropriate. The 

14 regulations shall address the following: 

15 (1) Segregation, protection, and replacement of 

16 topsoil or other suitable growth medium, and the 

17 prevention, where possible, of soil contamination. 

18 (2) Maintenance of the stability of all surface 

19 areas. 

20 (3) Control of sediments to prevent erosion and 

21 manage drainage. 

22 (4) Minimization of the formation and migra23 tion of acidic, alkaline, metal-bearing, or other dele24 terious leachate. 


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1 (5) Reduction of the visual impact of mineral 

2 activities to the surrounding topography, including 

3 as necessary pit backfill. 

4 (6) Establishment of a diverse, effective, and 

5 permanent vegetative cover of the same seasonal va6 riety native to the area affected by mineral activities, 

7 and equal in extent of cover to the natural vegeta8 tion of the area. 

9 (7) Design and maintenance of leach oper10 ations, impoundments, and excess waste according to 

11 standard engineering standards to achieve and main12 tain stability and reclamation of the site. 

13 (8) Removal of structures and roads and seal14 ing of drill holes. 

15 (9) Restoration of, or mitigation for, fish and 

16 wildlife habitat disturbed by mineral activities. 

17 (10) Preservation of cultural, paleontological, 

18 and cave resources. 

19 (11) Prevention and suppression of fire in the 

20 area of mineral activities. 

21 (c) SURFACE OR GROUNDWATER WITHDRAWALS.— 

22 The Secretary shall work with State and local govern23 ments with authority over the allocation and use of surface 

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1 drawals made as a result of mining activities approved 

2 under this section do not cause undue degradation or re3 sults in material alteration of the hydrologic balance. 

4 (d) SPECIAL RULE.—Reclamation activities for a 

5 mining claim that has been forfeited, relinquished, or 

6 lapsed, or a plan that has expired or been revoked or sus7 pended, shall continue subject to review and approval by 

8 the Secretary, or for National Forest System lands the 

9 Secretary of Agriculture. 

10 SEC. 138. STATE LAW AND REGULATION. 

11 (a) STATE LAW.— 

12 (1) Any reclamation, land use, environmental, 

13 or public health protection standard or requirement 

14 in State, county, local, or tribal law or regulation 

15 that meets or exceeds the requirements of this title 

16 shall not be construed to be inconsistent with any 

17 such standard. 

18 (2) Any bonding standard or requirement in 

19 State, county, local, or tribal law or regulation that 

20 meets or exceeds the requirements of this title shall 

21 not be construed to be inconsistent with such re22 quirements. 

23 (3) Any inspection standard or requirement in 

24 State, county, local, or tribal law or regulation that 

25 meets or exceeds the requirements of this title shall 


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1 not be construed to be inconsistent with such re2 quirements. 

3 (b) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER STATE REQUIRE4 MENTS.— 

5 (1) Nothing in this title shall be construed as 

6 affecting any toxic substance, solid waste, or air or 

7 water quality, standard or requirement of any State, 

8 county, local, or tribal law or regulation, which may 

9 be applicable to mineral activities on lands subject to 

10 this title. 

11 (2) Nothing in this title shall be construed as 

12 affecting in any way the right of any person to en13 force or protect, under applicable law, such person’s 

14 interest in water resources affected by mineral ac15 tivities on lands subject to this title. 

16 (c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.— 

17 (1) Any State may enter into a cooperative 

18 agreement with the Secretary, or for National For19 est System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, for 

20 the purposes of such Secretary applying such stand21 ards and requirements referred to in subsection (a) 

22 and subsection (b) to mineral activities or reclama23 tion on lands subject to this title. 

24 (2) In such instances where the proposed min25 eral activities would affect lands not subject to this 


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1 title in addition to lands subject to this title, in 

2 order to approve a plan of operations the Secretary 

3 concerned shall enter into a cooperative agreement 

4 with the State that sets forth a common regulatory 

5 framework consistent with the requirements of this 

6 title for the purposes of such plan of operations. Any 

7 such common regulatory framework shall not negate 

8 the authority of the Federal Government to inde9 pendently inspect mines and operations and bring 

10 enforcement actions for violations. 

11 (3) The Secretary concerned shall not enter 

12 into a cooperative agreement with any State under 

13 this section until after notice in the Federal Register 

14 and opportunity for public comment and hearing. 

15 (d) PRIOR AGREEMENTS.—Any cooperative agree16 ment or such other understanding between the Secretary 

17 concerned and any State, or political subdivision thereof, 

18 relating to the management of mineral activities on lands 

19 subject to this title that was in existence on the date of 

20 enactment of this Act may only continue in force until 1 

21 year after the date of enactment of this Act. During such 

22 1-year period, the State and the Secretary shall review the 

23 terms of the agreement and make changes that are nec24 essary to be consistent with this title. 


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1 SEC. 139. LIMITATION ON THE ISSUANCE OF PERMITS. 

2 No permit shall be issued under this subtitle that au3 thorizes mineral activities that would impair the land or 

4 resources of a National Park or a National Monument. 

5 For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘impair’’ shall in6 clude any diminution of the affected land including wild7 life, scenic assets, water resources, air quality, and acous8 tic qualities, or other changes that would impair a citizen’s 

9 experience at the National Park or National Monument. 

10 Subtitle D—Administrative and 

11 Miscellaneous Provisions 

12 SEC. 141. POLICY FUNCTIONS. 

13 (a) MINERALS POLICY.—Section 101 of the Mining 

14 and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 21a) is 

15 amended— 

16 (1) in the first sentence by inserting before the 

17 period at the end the following: ‘‘and to ensure that 

18 mineral extraction and processing not cause undue 

19 degradation of the natural and cultural resources of 

20 the public lands’’; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end thereof the following: 

22 ‘‘It shall also be the responsibility of the Secretary 

23 of Agriculture to carry out the policy provisions of 

24 paragraphs (1) and (2) of this section.’’. 

25 (b) MINERAL DATA.—Section 5(e)(3) of the National 

26 Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development 


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1 Act of 1980 (30 U.S.C. 1604(e)(3)) is amended by insert2 ing before the period the following: ‘‘, except that for Na3 tional Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture 

4 shall promptly initiate actions to improve the availability 

5 and analysis of mineral data in public land use decision6 making’’. 

7 SEC. 142. USER FEES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Secretary 

9 of Agriculture may each establish and collect from persons 

10 subject to the requirements of this title such user fees as 

11 may be necessary to reimburse the United States for ex12 penses incurred in administering such requirements. Fees 

13 may be assessed and collected under this section only in 

14 such manner as may reasonably be expected to result in 

15 an aggregate amount of the fees collected during any fiscal 

16 year which does not exceed the aggregate amount of ad17 ministrative expenses referred to in this section. 

18 (b) ADJUSTMENT.— 

19 (1) The Secretary shall adjust the fees required 

20 by this section to reflect changes in the Consumer 

21 Price Index published by the Bureau of Labor Sta22 tistics of the Department of Labor every 5 years 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act, or more fre24 quently if the Secretary determines an adjustment to 

25 be reasonable. 


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1 (2) The Secretary shall provide claimants notice 

2 of any adjustment made under this subsection not 

3 later than July 1 of any year in which the adjust4 ment is made. 

5 (3) A fee adjustment under this subsection shall 

6 begin to apply the calendar year following the cal7 endar year in which it is made. 

8 SEC. 143. INSPECTION AND MONITORING. 

9 (a) INSPECTIONS.— 

10 (1) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys11 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall make 

12 inspections of mineral activities so as to ensure com13 pliance with the requirements of this title. 

14 (2) The Secretary concerned shall establish a 

15 frequency of inspections for mineral activities con16 ducted under a permit issued under subtitle C, but 

17 in no event shall such inspection frequency be less 

18 than one complete inspection per calendar quarter 

19 or, two per calendar quarter in the case of a permit 

20 for which the Secretary concerned approves an appli21 cation under section 134(f) (relating to temporary 

22 cessation of operations). After revegetation has been 

23 established in accordance with a reclamation plan, 

24 such Secretary shall conduct annually two complete 

25 inspections. Such Secretary shall have the discretion 


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1 to modify the inspection frequency for mineral ac2 tivities that are conducted on a seasonal basis. In3 spections shall continue under this subsection until 

4 final release of financial assurance. 

5 (3)(A) Any person who has reason to believe he 

6 or she is or may be adversely affected by mineral ac7 tivities due to any violation of the requirements of 

8 a permit approved under this title may request an 

9 inspection. The Secretary, or for National Forest 

10 System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall de11 termine within 10 working days of receipt of the re12 quest whether the request states a reason to believe 

13 that a violation exists. If the person alleges and pro14 vides reason to believe that an imminent threat to 

15 the environment or danger to the health or safety of 

16 the public exists, the 10-day period shall be waived 

17 and the inspection shall be conducted immediately. 

18 The identity of the person supplying information to 

19 the Secretary relating to a possible violation or im20 minent danger or harm shall remain confidential 

21 with the Secretary if so requested by that person. 

22 (B) The Secretaries shall, by joint rule, estab23 lish procedures for the review of (i) any decision by 

24 an authorized representative not to inspect; or (ii) 

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1 medial actions are taken with respect to any alleged 

2 violation. The Secretary concerned shall furnish such 

3 persons requesting the review a written statement of 

4 the reasons for the Secretary’s final disposition of 

5 the case. 

6 (b) MONITORING.— 

7 (1) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys8 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall require 

9 all operators to develop and maintain a monitoring 

10 and evaluation system that shall identify compliance 

11 with all requirements of a permit approved under 

12 this title. The Secretary concerned may require addi13 tional monitoring to be conducted as necessary to 

14 assure compliance with the reclamation and other 

15 environmental standards of this title. Such plan 

16 must be reviewed and approved by the Secretary and 

17 shall become a part of the explorations or operations 

18 permit. 

19 (2) The operator shall file reports with the Sec20 retary, or for National Forest System lands the Sec21 retary of Agriculture, on a frequency determined by 

22 the Secretary concerned, on the results of the moni23 toring and evaluation process, except that if the 

24 monitoring and evaluation show a violation of the re25 quirements of a permit approved under this title, it 


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1 shall be reported immediately to the Secretary con2 cerned. The Secretary shall evaluate the reports sub3 mitted pursuant to this paragraph, and based on 

4 those reports and any necessary inspection shall take 

5 enforcement action pursuant to this section. Such 

6 reports shall be maintained by the operator and by 

7 the Secretary and shall be made available to the 

8 public. 

9 (3) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys10 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall deter11 mine what information shall be reported by the oper12 ator pursuant to paragraph (2). A failure to report 

13 as required by the Secretary concerned shall con14 stitute a violation of this title and subject the oper15 ator to enforcement action pursuant to section 146. 

16 SEC. 144. CITIZENS SUITS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

18 (b), any person may commence a civil action on his or 

19 her own behalf to compel compliance— 

20 (1) against any person (including the Secretary 

21 or the Secretary of Agriculture) who is alleged to be 

22 in violation of any of the provisions of this title or 

23 any regulation promulgated pursuant to subtitle C 

24 of this title or any term or condition of any permit 

25 issued under subtitle C of this title; or 


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1 (2) against the Secretary or the Secretary of 

2 Agriculture where there is alleged a failure of such 

3 Secretary to perform any act or duty under this 

4 title, or to promulgate any regulation under this 

5 title, which is not within the discretion of the Sec6 retary concerned. 

7 The United States district courts shall have jurisdiction 

8 over actions brought under this section, without regard to 

9 the amount in controversy or the citizenship of the parties, 

10 including actions brought to apply any civil penalty under 

11 this title. The district courts of the United States shall 

12 have jurisdiction to compel agency action unreasonably de13 layed. 

14 (b) EXCEPTIONS.— 

15 (1) No action may be commenced under sub16 section (a) before the end of the 60-day period be17 ginning on the date the plaintiff has given notice in 

18 writing of such alleged violation to the alleged viola19 tor and the Secretary, or for National Forest Sys20 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, except that 

21 any such action may be brought immediately after 

22 such notification if the violation complained of con23 stitutes an imminent threat to the environment or to 

24 the health or safety of the public. 


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1 (2) No action may be brought against any per2 son other than the Secretary or the Secretary of Ag3 riculture under subsection (a)(1) if such Secretary 

4 has commenced and is diligently prosecuting a civil 

5 or criminal action in a court of the United States to 

6 require compliance. 

7 (3) No action may be commenced under para8 graph (2) of subsection (a) against either Secretary 

9 to review any rule promulgated by, or to any permit 

10 issued or denied by such Secretary if such rule or 

11 permit issuance or denial is judicially reviewable 

12 under any provision of law at any time after such 

13 promulgation, issuance, or denial is final. 

14 (c) VENUE.—Venue of all actions brought under this 

15 section shall be determined in accordance with section 

16 1391 of title 28, United States Code. 

17 (d) COSTS.—The court, in issuing any final order in 

18 any action brought pursuant to this section may award 

19 costs of litigation (including attorney and expert witness 

20 fees) to any prevailing or substantially prevailing party 

21 whenever the court determines such award is appropriate. 

22 The court may, if a temporary restraining order or pre23 liminary injunction is sought, require the filing of a bond 

24 or equivalent security in accordance with the Federal 

25 Rules of Civil Procedure. 


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1 (e) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section shall 

2 restrict any right which any person (or class of persons) 

3 may have under chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code, 

4 under this section, or under any other statute or common 

5 law to bring an action to seek any relief against the Sec6 retary or the Secretary of Agriculture or against any other 

7 person, including any action for any violation of this title 

8 or of any regulation or permit issued under this title or 

9 for any failure to act as required by law. Nothing in this 

10 section shall affect the jurisdiction of any court under any 

11 provision of title 28, United States Code, including any 

12 action for any violation of this title or of any regulation 

13 or permit issued under this title or for any failure to act 

14 as required by law. 

15 SEC. 145. ADMINISTRATIVE AND JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

16 (a) REVIEW BY SECRETARY.— 

17 (1)(A) Any person issued a notice of violation 

18 or cessation order under section 146, or any person 

19 having an interest which is or may be adversely af20 fected by such notice or order, may apply to the Sec21 retary, or for National Forest System lands the Sec22 retary of Agriculture, for review of the notice or 

23 order. 


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1 (B) Any person who is subject to a penalty as2 sessed under section 146 may apply to the Secretary 

3 concerned for review of the assessment. 

4 (C) Any person may apply to such Secretary for 

5 review of the decision. 

6 (D) Pending a review by the Secretary or reso7 lution of an administrative appeal, final decisions 

8 (except enforcement actions under section 146) shall 

9 be stayed. 

10 (2) The Secretary concerned shall provide an 

11 opportunity for a public hearing at the request of 

12 any party to the proceeding as specified in para13 graph (1). The filing of an application for review 

14 under this subsection shall not operate as a stay of 

15 any order or notice issued under section 146. 

16 (3) For any review proceeding under this sub17 section, the Secretary concerned shall make findings 

18 of fact and shall issue a written decision incor19 porating therein an order vacating, affirming, modi20 fying, or terminating the notice, order, or decision, 

21 or with respect to an assessment, the amount of 

22 penalty that is warranted. 

23 (4) Pending completion of any review pro24 ceedings under this subsection, the applicant may 

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1 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, a written re2 quest that the Secretary grant temporary relief from 

3 any order issued under section 146 together with a 

4 detailed statement giving reasons for such relief. 

5 The Secretary concerned shall expeditiously issue an 

6 order or decision granting or denying such relief. 

7 The Secretary concerned may grant such relief 

8 under such conditions as he or she may prescribe 

9 only if such relief shall not adversely affect the 

10 health or safety of the public or cause imminent en11 vironmental harm to land, air, or water resources. 

12 (5) The availability of review under this sub13 section shall not be construed to limit the operation 

14 of rights under section 144 (relating to citizen 

15 suits). 

16 (b) COSTS.—Whenever a proceeding occurs under 

17 subsection (a), at the request of any person, a sum equal 

18 to the aggregate amount of all costs and expenses (includ19 ing attorney fees) as determined by the Secretary or Sec20 retaries concerned or the court to have been reasonably 

21 incurred by such person for or in connection with partici22 pation in such proceedings, including any judicial review 

23 of the proceeding, may be assessed against either party 

24 as the court, in the case of judicial review, or the Secretary 

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1 ceedings, deems proper if it is determined that such party 

2 prevailed in whole or in part, achieving some success on 

3 the merits, and that such party made a substantial con4 tribution to a full and fair determination of the issues. 

5 SEC. 146. ENFORCEMENT. 

6 (a) ORDERS.— 

7 (1) If the Secretary, or for National Forest 

8 System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, or an au9 thorized representative of such Secretary, determines 

10 that any person is in violation of any environmental 

11 protection requirement under subtitle C or any regu12 lation issued by the Secretaries to implement this 

13 title, such Secretary or authorized representative 

14 shall issue to such person a notice of violation de15 scribing the violation and the corrective measures to 

16 be taken. The Secretary concerned, or the author17 ized representative of such Secretary, shall provide 

18 such person with a period of time not to exceed 30 

19 days to abate the violation. Such period of time may 

20 be extended by the Secretary concerned upon a 

21 showing of good cause by such person. If, upon the 

22 expiration of time provided for such abatement, the 

23 Secretary concerned, or the authorized representa24 tive of such Secretary, finds that the violation has 

25 not been abated he or she shall immediately order a 


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1 cessation of all mineral activities or the portion 

2 thereof relevant to the violation. 

3 (2) If the Secretary concerned, or the author4 ized representative of the Secretary concerned, de5 termines that any condition or practice exists, or 

6 that any person is in violation of any requirement 

7 under a permit approved under this title, and such 

8 condition, practice or violation is causing, or can 

9 reasonably be expected to cause— 

10 (A) an imminent danger to the health or 

11 safety of the public; or 

12 (B) significant, imminent environmental 

13 harm to land, air, water, or fish or wildlife re14 sources, 

15 such Secretary or authorized representative shall im16 mediately order a cessation of mineral activities or 

17 the portion thereof relevant to the condition, prac18 tice, or violation. 

19 (3)(A) A cessation order pursuant to para20 graphs (1) or (2) shall remain in effect until such 

21 Secretary, or authorized representative, determines 

22 that the condition, practice, or violation has been 

23 abated, or until modified, vacated or terminated by 

24 the Secretary or authorized representative. In any 

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1 tive shall determine the steps necessary to abate the 

2 violation in the most expeditious manner possible 

3 and shall include the necessary measures in the 

4 order. The Secretary concerned shall require appro5 priate financial assurances to ensure that the abate6 ment obligations are met. 

7 (B) Any notice or order issued pursuant to 

8 paragraphs (1) or (2) may be modified, vacated, or 

9 terminated by the Secretary concerned or an author10 ized representative of such Secretary. Any person to 

11 whom any such notice or order is issued shall be en12 titled to a hearing on the record. 

13 (4) If, after 30 days of the date of the order 

14 referred to in paragraph (3)(A) the required abate15 ment has not occurred, the Secretary concerned shall 

16 take such alternative enforcement action against the 

17 claim holder or operator (or any person who controls 

18 the claim holder or operator) as will most likely 

19 bring about abatement in the most expeditious man20 ner possible. Such alternative enforcement action 

21 may include, but is not necessarily limited to, seek22 ing appropriate injunctive relief to bring about 

23 abatement. Nothing in this paragraph shall preclude 

24 the Secretary, or for National Forest System lands 

25 the Secretary of Agriculture, from taking alternative 


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1 enforcement action prior to the expiration of 30 

2 days. 

3 (5) If a claim holder or operator (or any person 

4 who controls the claim holder or operator) fails to 

5 abate a violation or defaults on the terms of the per6 mit, the Secretary, or for National Forest System 

7 lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall forfeit the 

8 financial assurance for the plan as necessary to en9 sure abatement and reclamation under this title. The 

10 Secretary concerned may prescribe conditions under 

11 which a surety may perform reclamation in accord12 ance with the approved plan in lieu of forfeiture. 

13 (6) The Secretary, or for National Forest Sys14 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, shall not 

15 cause forfeiture of the financial assurance while ad16 ministrative or judicial review is pending. 

17 (7) In the event of forfeiture, the claim holder, 

18 operator, or any affiliate thereof, as appropriate as 

19 determined by the Secretary by rule, shall be jointly 

20 and severally liable for any remaining reclamation 

21 obligations under this title. 

22 (b) COMPLIANCE.—The Secretary, or for National 

23 Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, may re24 quest the Attorney General to institute a civil action for 

25 relief, including a permanent or temporary injunction or 


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1 restraining order, or any other appropriate enforcement 

2 order, including the imposition of civil penalties, in the dis3 trict court of the United States for the district in which 

4 the mineral activities are located whenever a person— 

5 (1) violates, fails, or refuses to comply with any 

6 order issued by the Secretary concerned under sub7 section (a); or 

8 (2) interferes with, hinders, or delays the Sec9 retary concerned in carrying out an inspection under 

10 section 143. 

11 Such court shall have jurisdiction to provide such relief 

12 as may be appropriate. Any relief granted by the court 

13 to enforce an order under paragraph (1) shall continue 

14 in effect until the completion or final termination of all 

15 proceedings for review of such order unless the district 

16 court granting such relief sets it aside. 

17 (c) DELEGATION.—Notwithstanding any other provi18 sion of law, the Secretary may utilize personnel of the Of19 fice of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement to 

20 ensure compliance with the requirements of this title. 

21 (d) PENALTIES.— 

22 (1) Any person who fails to comply with any re23 quirement of a permit approved under this title or 

24 any regulation issued by the Secretaries to imple25 ment this title shall be liable for a penalty of not 


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1 more than $25,000 per violation. Each day of viola2 tion may be deemed a separate violation for pur3 poses of penalty assessments. 

4 (2) A person who fails to correct a violation for 

5 which a cessation order has been issued under sub6 section (a) within the period permitted for its correc7 tion shall be assessed a civil penalty of not less than 

8 $1,000 per violation for each day during which such 

9 failure continues. 

10 (3) Whenever a corporation is in violation of a 

11 requirement of a permit approved under this title or 

12 any regulation issued by the Secretaries to imple13 ment this title or fails or refuses to comply with an 

14 order issued under subsection (a), any director, offi15 cer, or agent of such corporation who knowingly au16 thorized, ordered, or carried out such violation, fail17 ure, or refusal shall be subject to the same penalties 

18 as may be imposed upon the person referred to in 

19 paragraph (1). 

20 (e) SUSPENSIONS OR REVOCATIONS.—The Secretary, 

21 or for National Forest System lands the Secretary of Agri22 culture, shall suspend or revoke a permit issued under 

23 subtitle C, in whole or in part, if the operator— 

24 (1) knowingly made or knowingly makes any 

25 false, inaccurate, or misleading material statement 


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1 in any mining claim, notice of location, application, 

2 record, report, plan, or other document filed or re3 quired to be maintained under this title; 

4 (2) fails to abate a violation covered by a ces5 sation order issued under subsection (a); 

6 (3) fails to comply with an order of the Sec7 retary concerned; 

8 (4) refuses to permit an audit pursuant to this 

9 title; 

10 (5) fails to maintain an adequate financial as11 surance under section 136; 

12 (6) fails to pay claim maintenance fees or other 

13 moneys due and owing under this title; or 

14 (7) with regard to plans conditionally approved 

15 under section 135(c)(2), fails to abate a violation to 

16 the satisfaction of the Secretary concerned, or if the 

17 validity of the violation is upheld on the appeal 

18 which formed the basis for the conditional approval. 

19 (f) FALSE STATEMENTS; TAMPERING.—Any person 

20 who knowingly— 

21 (1) makes any false material statement, rep22 resentation, or certification in, or omits or conceals 

23 material information from, or unlawfully alters, any 

24 mining claim, notice of location, application, record, 


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1 report, plan, or other documents filed or required to 

2 be maintained under this title; or 

3 (2) falsifies, tampers with, renders inaccurate, 

4 or fails to install any monitoring device or method 

5 required to be maintained under this title, 

6 shall upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more 

7 than $10,000. If a conviction of a person is for a violation 

8 committed after a first conviction of such person under 

9 this subsection, punishment shall be by a fine of not more 

10 than $20,000 per day of violation. Each day of continuing 

11 violation may be deemed a separate violation for purposes 

12 of penalty assessments. 

13 (g) KNOWING VIOLATIONS.—Any person who know14 ingly— 

15 (1) engages in mineral activities without a per16 mit required under subtitle C; or 

17 (2) violates any other requirement of a permit 

18 issued under this title, or any condition or limitation 

19 thereof, 

20 shall upon conviction be punished by a fine of not less 

21 than $5,000 nor more than $50,000 per day of violation. 

22 If a conviction of a person is for a violation committed 

23 after the first conviction of such person under this sub24 section, punishment shall be a fine of not less than 

25 $10,000 per day of violation. 


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1 (h) KNOWING AND WILLFUL VIOLATIONS.—Any per2 son who knowingly and willfully commits an act for which 

3 a civil penalty is provided in paragraph (1) of subsection 

4 (g) shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not 

5 more than $50,000. 

6 (i) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

7 term ‘‘person’’ includes any officer, agent, or employee of 

8 a person. 

9 (j) ADJUSTMENT OF PENALTIES.—The Secretary 

10 may adjust the penalties described in this section as nec11 essary. 

12 SEC. 147. REGULATIONS. 

13 The Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture shall 

14 issue such regulations as are necessary to implement this 

15 title. The regulations implementing subtitle B, subtitle C, 

16 subtitle D, and subtitle E that affect the Forest Service 

17 shall be joint regulations issued by both Secretaries, and 

18 shall be issued no later than 180 days after the date of 

19 enactment of this Act. 

20 SEC. 148. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

21 This title shall take effect on the date of enactment 

22 of this Act, except as otherwise provided in this title. 

23 SEC. 149. SAVINGS CLAUSE. 

24 (a) SPECIAL APPLICATION OF MINING LAWS.—Noth25 ing in this title shall be construed as repealing or modiVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:57 Jun 26, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00079 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2467.IH H2467

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1 fying any Federal law, regulation, order, or land use plan, 

2 in effect prior to the date of enactment of this Act that 

3 prohibits or restricts the application of the general mining 

4 laws, including laws that provide for special management 

5 criteria for operations under the general mining laws as 

6 in effect prior to the date of enactment of this Act, to 

7 the extent such laws provide for protection of natural and 

8 cultural resources and the environment greater than re9 quired under this title, and any such prior law shall re10 main in force and effect with respect to claims located (or 

11 proposed to be located) or converted under this title. Noth12 ing in this title shall be construed as applying to or lim13 iting mineral investigations, studies, or other mineral ac14 tivities conducted by any Federal or State agency acting 

15 in its governmental capacity pursuant to other authority. 

16 Nothing in this title shall affect or limit any assessment, 

17 investigation, evaluation, or listing pursuant to the Com18 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 

19 Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.), or the 

20 Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 3251 et seq.). 

21 (b) EFFECT ON OTHER FEDERAL LAWS.—The provi22 sions of this title shall supersede the general mining laws, 

23 except for those parts of the general mining laws respect24 ing location of mining claims that are not expressly modi25 fied by this title. Except for the general mining laws, nothVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:57 Jun 26, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00080 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2467.IH H2467

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1 ing in this title shall be construed as superseding, modi2 fying, amending, or repealing any provision of Federal law 

3 not expressly superseded, modified, amended, or repealed 

4 by this title. Nothing in this title shall be construed as 

5 altering, affecting, amending, modifying, or changing, di6 rectly or indirectly, any law which refers to and provides 

7 authorities or responsibilities for, or is administered by, 

8 the Environmental Protection Agency or the Adminis9 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency, including 

10 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, title XIV of the 

11 Public Health Service Act (the Safe Drinking Water Act), 

12 the Clean Air Act, the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990, 

13 the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Federal Insecticide, 

14 Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, the Federal Food, Drug, 

15 and Cosmetic Act, the Motor Vehicle Information and 

16 Cost Savings Act, the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, 

17 the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the Atomic Energy 

18 Act, the Noise Control Act of 1972, the Solid Waste Dis19 posal Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 

20 Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, the Superfund 

21 Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, the Ocean 

22 Dumping Act, the Environmental Research, Development, 

23 and Demonstration Authorization Act, the Pollution Pros24 ecution Act of 1990, and the Federal Facilities Compli25 ance Act of 1992, or any statute containing an amendVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:57 Jun 26, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2467.IH H2467

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1 ment to any of such Acts. Nothing in this title shall be 

2 construed as modifying or affecting any provision of the 

3 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act 

4 (Public Law 101–601) or any provision of the American 

5 Indian Religious Freedom Act (42 U.S.C. 1996), the Na6 tional Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.), 

7 and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 

8 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq.). 

9 (c) PROTECTION OF CONSERVATION AREAS.—In 

10 order to protect the resources and values of National Con11 servation System units, the Secretary, as appropriate, 

12 shall utilize authority under this title and other applicable 

13 law to the fullest extent necessary to prevent mineral ac14 tivities that could have an adverse impact on the resources 

15 or values for which such units were established. 

16 (d) SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY OF INDIAN TRIBES.— 

17 Nothing in this section shall be construed so as to waive 

18 the sovereign immunity of any Indian tribe. 

19 SEC. 150. AVAILABILITY OF PUBLIC RECORDS. 

20 Copies of records, reports, inspection materials, or in21 formation obtained by the Secretary or the Secretary of 

22 Agriculture under this title shall be made available to the 

23 public, consistent with section 552 of title 5, United States 

24 Code, in central and sufficient locations in the county, 

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1 lamation so that such items are conveniently available to 

2 residents in the area proposed or approved for mineral ac3 tivities and on the Internet. 

4 SEC. 151. MISCELLANEOUS POWERS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out his or her duties 

6 under this title, the Secretary, or for National Forest Sys7 tem lands the Secretary of Agriculture, may conduct any 

8 investigation, inspection, or other inquiry necessary and 

9 appropriate and may conduct, after notice, any hearing 

10 or audit, necessary and appropriate to carrying out his 

11 or her duties. 

12 (b) ANCILLARY POWERS.—In connection with any 

13 hearing, inquiry, investigation, or audit under this title, 

14 the Secretary, or for National Forest System lands the 

15 Secretary of Agriculture, is authorized to take any of the 

16 following actions: 

17 (1) Require, by special or general order, any 

18 person to submit in writing such affidavits and an19 swers to questions as the Secretary concerned may 

20 reasonably prescribe, which submission shall be 

21 made within such reasonable period and under oath 

22 or otherwise, as may be necessary. 

23 (2) Administer oaths. 

24 (3) Require by subpoena the attendance and 

25 testimony of witnesses and the production of all 


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1 books, papers, records, documents, matter, and ma2 terials, as such Secretary may request. 

3 (4) Order testimony to be taken by deposition 

4 before any person who is designated by such Sec5 retary and who has the power to administer oaths, 

6 and to compel testimony and the production of evi7 dence in the same manner as authorized under para8 graph (3) of this subsection. 

9 (5) Pay witnesses the same fees and mileage as 

10 are paid in like circumstances in the courts of the 

11 United States. 

12 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—In cases of refusal to obey a 

13 subpoena served upon any person under this section, the 

14 district court of the United States for any district in which 

15 such person is found, resides, or transacts business, upon 

16 application by the Attorney General at the request of the 

17 Secretary concerned and after notice to such person, shall 

18 have jurisdiction to issue an order requiring such person 

19 to appear and produce documents before the Secretary 

20 concerned. Any failure to obey such order of the court may 

21 be punished by such court as contempt thereof and subject 

22 to a penalty of up to $10,000 a day. 

23 (d) ENTRY AND ACCESS.—Without advance notice 

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1 retary, or for National Forest System lands the Secretary 

2 of Agriculture, or any authorized representative thereof— 

3 (1) shall have the right of entry to, upon, or 

4 through the site of any claim, mineral activities, or 

5 any premises in which any records required to be 

6 maintained under this title are located; 

7 (2) may at reasonable times, and without delay, 

8 have access to records, inspect any monitoring 

9 equipment, or review any method of operation re10 quired under this title; 

11 (3) may engage in any work and do all things 

12 necessary or expedient to implement and administer 

13 the provisions of this title; 

14 (4) may, on any mining claim located under the 

15 general mining laws and maintained in compliance 

16 with this title, and without advance notice, stop, and 

17 inspect any motorized form of transportation that 

18 such Secretary has probable cause to believe is car19 rying locatable minerals, concentrates, or products 

20 derived therefrom from a claim site for the purpose 

21 of determining whether the operator of such vehicle 

22 has documentation related to such locatable min23 erals, concentrates, or products derived therefrom as 

24 required by law, if such documentation is required 

25 under this title; and 


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1 (5) may, if accompanied by any appropriate law 

2 enforcement officer, or an appropriate law enforce3 ment officer alone, stop and inspect any motorized 

4 form of transportation which is not on a claim site 

5 if he or she has probable cause to believe such vehi6 cle is carrying locatable minerals, concentrates, or 

7 products derived therefrom from a claim site on 

8 Federal lands or allocated to such claim site. Such 

9 inspection shall be for the purpose of determining 

10 whether the operator of such vehicle has the docu11 mentation required by law, if such documentation is 

12 required under this title. 

13 SEC. 152. MULTIPLE MINERAL DEVELOPMENT AND SUR14 FACE RESOURCES. 

15 The provisions of sections 4 and 6 of the Act of Au16 gust 13, 1954 (30 U.S.C. 524 and 526), commonly known 

17 as the Multiple Minerals Development Act, and the provi18 sions of section 4 of the Act of July 23, 1955 (30 U.S.C. 

19 612), shall apply to all mining claims located under the 

20 general mining laws and maintained in compliance with 

21 such laws and this title. 

22 SEC. 153. MINERAL MATERIALS. 

23 (a) DETERMINATIONS.—Section 3 of the Act of July 

24 23, 1955 (30 U.S.C. 611), is amended— 

25 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before the first sentence; 


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1 (2) by inserting ‘‘mineral materials, including’’ 

2 after ‘‘varieties of’’ in the first sentence; 

3 (3) by striking ‘‘or cinders’’ and inserting in 

4 lieu thereof ‘‘cinders, and clay’’; and 

5 (4) by adding the following new subsection at 

6 the end thereof: 

7 ‘‘(b)(1) Subject to valid existing rights, after the date 

8 of enactment of the Mining Reform and Deficit Reduction 

9 Act of 2013, notwithstanding the reference to common va10 rieties in subsection (a) and to the exception to such term 

11 relating to a deposit of materials with some property giv12 ing it distinct and special value, all deposits of mineral 

13 materials referred to in such subsection, including the 

14 block pumice referred to in such subsection, shall be sub15 ject to disposal only under the terms and conditions of 

16 the Materials Act of 1947. 

17 ‘‘(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), the term ‘valid 

18 existing rights’ means that a mining claim located for any 

19 such mineral material— 

20 ‘‘(A) had and still has some property giving it 

21 the distinct and special value referred to in sub22 section (a), or as the case may be, met the definition 

23 of block pumice referred to in such subsection; 

24 ‘‘(B) was properly located and maintained 

25 under the general mining laws prior to the date of 


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1 enactment of the Mining Reform and Deficit Reduc2 tion Act of 2013; 

3 ‘‘(C) was supported by a discovery of a valuable 

4 mineral deposit within the meaning of the general 

5 mining laws as in effect immediately prior to the 

6 date of enactment of the Mining Reform and Deficit 

7 Reduction Act of 2013; and 

8 ‘‘(D) that such claim continues to be valid 

9 under this Act.’’. 

10 (b) MINERAL MATERIALS DISPOSAL CLARIFICA11 TION.—Section 4 of the Act of July 23, 1955 (30 U.S.C. 

12 612), is amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (b) by inserting ‘‘and mineral 

14 material’’ after ‘‘vegetative’’; and 

15 (2) in subsection (c) by inserting ‘‘and mineral 

16 material’’ after ‘‘vegetative’’. 

17 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1 of the 

18 Act of July 31, 1947, entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the 

19 disposal of materials on the public lands of the United 

20 States’’ (30 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘common varieties of’’ in the first sentence. 

22 (d) SHORT TITLES.— 

23 (1) SURFACE RESOURCES.—The Act of July 

24 23, 1955, is amended by inserting after section 7 

25 the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 8. This Act may be cited as the ‘Surface Re2 sources Act of 1955’.’’. 

3 (2) MINERAL MATERIALS.—The Act of July 31, 

4 1947, entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the disposal of 

5 materials on the public lands of the United States’’ 

6 (30 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

7 after section 4 the following new section: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 5. This Act may be cited as the ‘Materials Act 

9 of 1947’.’’. 

10 (e) REPEALS.— 

11 (1) Subject to valid existing rights, the Act of 

12 August 4, 1892 (27 Stat. 348, 30 U.S.C. 161), com13 monly known as the Building Stone Act, is hereby 

14 repealed. 

15 (2) Subject to valid existing rights, the Act of 

16 January 31, 1901 (30 U.S.C. 162), commonly 

17 known as the Saline Placer Act, is hereby repealed. 

18 TITLE II—ABANDONED MINE 

19 RECLAMATION 

20 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Abandoned Mine Rec22 lamation and Deficit Reduction Act of 2013’’. 

23 SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS AND REFERENCES. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—As used in this title: 


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1 (1) The term ‘‘beneficiation’’ means the crush2 ing and grinding of hardrock mineral ore and such 

3 processes as are employed to free the mineral from 

4 other constituents, including but not necessarily lim5 ited to, physical and chemical separation techniques. 

6 (2) The term ‘‘claim holder’’ means a person 

7 holding a mining claim, millsite claim, or tunnel site 

8 claim located under the general mining laws and 

9 maintained in compliance with such laws and this 

10 title. Such term may include an agent of a claim 

11 holder. 

12 (3) The term ‘‘control’’ means having the abil13 ity, directly or indirectly, to determine (without re14 gard to whether exercised through one or more cor15 porate structures) the manner in which an entity 

16 conducts mineral activities, through any means, in17 cluding without limitation, ownership interest, au18 thority to commit the entity’s real or financial as19 sets, position as a director, officer, or partner of the 

20 entity, or contractual arrangement. 

21 (4) The term ‘‘crude ore’’ means ore in its un22 processed form, containing profitable amounts of the 

23 target mineral. 

24 (5) The term ‘‘displaced material’’ means any 

25 crude ore and waste dislodged from its location at 


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1 the time hardrock mining begins at surface, under2 ground, or in-situ mines. 

3 (6) The term ‘‘exploration’’ means surface dis4 turbance to evaluate the type, extent, quantity, or 

5 quality of minerals present including sampling, drill6 ing, and analyzing hardrock mineral values. 

7 (7) The term ‘‘Federal land’’ means any land, 

8 including mineral interests, owned by the United 

9 States without regard to how the United States ac10 quired ownership of the land and without regard to 

11 the agency having responsibility for management 

12 thereof, except Indian lands. 

13 (8) The term ‘‘hardrock’’ means any mineral 

14 mined under the Mining Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 

15 22–54), and with respect to State, Indian, and pri16 vate lands, any minerals on those lands that would 

17 be considered hardrock minerals if such minerals 

18 had been mined under the Mining Law of 1872. 

19 (9) The term ‘‘hardrock mining operation’’ 

20 means any activities or operations conducted to mine 

21 minerals under the Mining Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 

22 22–54), and, with respect to State, Indian, and pri23 vate lands, any activities or operations conducted on 

24 such lands to mine minerals that would be consid25 ered hardrock minerals if such minerals had been 


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1 mined under the Mining Law of 1872: Provided, 

2 however, That if subsequent to the date of enact3 ment of this Act, any minerals mined under the 

4 Mining Law of 1872 are transferred from the re5 quirements of the Mining Law of 1872 to different 

6 statutory requirements, those activities or operations 

7 conducted on lands to mine those minerals so trans8 ferred will continue to be subject to the provisions 

9 of this title. 

10 (10) The term ‘‘Indian lands’’ means lands held 

11 in trust for the benefit of an Indian tribe or indi12 vidual or held by an Indian tribe or individual sub13 ject to a restriction by the United States against 

14 alienation. 

15 (11) The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any Indian 

16 tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group 

17 or community, including any Alaska Native village 

18 or regional corporation as defined in or established 

19 pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

20 Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), that is recognized as 

21 eligible for the special programs and services pro22 vided by the United States to Indians because of 

23 their status as Indians. 

24 (12) The term ‘‘mineral activities’’ means any 

25 activity on a mining claim, millsite claim, or tunnel 


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1 site claim for, related to, or incidental to, mineral 

2 exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, or rec3 lamation activities for any hardrock mineral. 

4 (13) The term ‘‘operator’’ means any person 

5 that conducts mineral activities and any agent of 

6 such person. 

7 (14) The term ‘‘person’’ means an individual, 

8 Indian tribe, partnership, association, society, joint 

9 venture, joint stock company, firm, company, cor10 poration, cooperative, or other organization and any 

11 instrumentality of State or local government includ12 ing any publicly owned utility or publicly owned cor13 poration of State or local government. 

14 (15) The term ‘‘processing’’ means processes 

15 downstream of beneficiation employed to prepare 

16 hardrock mineral ore into the final marketable prod17 uct, including but not limited to smelting and elec18 trolytic refining. 

19 (16) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

20 of the Interior, unless otherwise specified. 

21 (17) The term ‘‘ton’’ means 2,000 pounds av22 oirdupois (.90718 metric ton). 

23 (18) The term ‘‘waste’’ means rock that must 

24 be fractured and removed in order to gain access to 

25 crude ore. 


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1 (b) REFERENCES TO OTHER LAWS.—(1) Any ref2 erence in this title to the term ‘‘general mining laws’’ is 

3 a reference to those Acts that generally comprise chapters 

4 2, 12A, and 16, and sections 161 and 162, of title 30, 

5 United States Code. 

6 (2) Any reference in this title to the Act of July 23, 

7 1955, is a reference to the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to amend 

8 the Act of July 31, 1947 (61 Stat. 681) and the mining 

9 laws to provide for multiple use of the surface of the same 

10 tracts of the public lands, and for other purposes’’ (30 

11 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 

12 Subtitle A—Hardrock Mining 

13 Reclamation 

14 SEC. 211. DISPLACED MATERIAL RECLAMATION FEE. 

15 (a) IMPOSITION OF FEE.—Except as provided in 

16 paragraph (2), each operator of a hardrock mining oper17 ation shall pay to the Secretary, for deposit in the Aban18 doned Mine Cleanup Fund established by section 221(a), 

19 a displaced material reclamation fee of 7 cents per ton 

20 of displaced material. 

21 (b) PAYMENT DEADLINE.—The reclamation fee shall 

22 be paid not later than 60 days after the end of each cal23 endar year beginning with the first calendar year occur24 ring after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 (c) SUBMISSION OF STATEMENT.—Together with 

2 such reclamation fee, all operators of hardrock mining op3 erations shall submit a statement of the amount of dis4 placed materials produced during mineral activities during 

5 the previous calendar year, the accuracy of which shall be 

6 sworn to by the operator and notarized. 

7 (d) PENALTY.—Any person, corporate officer, agent 

8 or director, on behalf of a hardrock mining operation, who 

9 knowingly makes any false statement, representation or 

10 certification, or knowingly fails to make any statement, 

11 representation or certification required in this section 

12 shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more 

13 than $10,000. 

14 (e) CIVIL ACTION TO RECOVER FEE.—Any portion 

15 of the reclamation fee not properly or promptly paid pur16 suant to this section shall be recoverable, with statutory 

17 interest, from the hardrock mining operations operator, in 

18 any court of competent jurisdiction in any action at law 

19 to compel payment of debts. 

20 (f) DEPOSIT OF REVENUES.—Amounts received by 

21 the Secretary under subsection (a)(1) shall be deposited 

22 in the Abandoned Mine Cleanup Fund established by sec23 tion 221(a). 


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1 (g) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section requires a re2 duction in, or otherwise affects, any similar fee required 

3 under any law (including regulations) of any State. 

4 SEC. 212. FEES ADJUSTMENTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall 

6 adjust the fees required by section 211 to reflect changes 

7 in the Consumer Price Index published by the Bureau of 

8 Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor every 5 years 

9 after the date of enactment of this Act, or more frequently 

10 if the Secretary determines an adjustment to be reason11 able. 

12 (b) NOTICE.—The Secretary shall provide claimants 

13 notice of any adjustment made under this section not later 

14 than July 1 of any year in which the adjustment is made. 

15 (c) APPLICATION.—A fee adjustment under this sec16 tion shall begin to apply in the calendar year following 

17 the calendar year in which it is made. 

18 Subtitle B—Abandoned Mine 

19 Cleanup Fund 

20 SEC. 221. ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established on the 

22 books of the Treasury of the United States a separate ac23 count to be known as the Abandoned Mine Cleanup Fund 

24 (hereinafter in this subtitle referred to as the ‘‘Fund’’) 

25 consisting of the following: 


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1 (1) All donations by persons, corporations, as2 sociations, and foundations for the purposes of this 

3 subtitle. 

4 (2) All amounts deposited in the Fund under 

5 section 211. 

6 (3) All income on investments under subsection 

7 (b). 

8 (b) INVESTMENT.—The Secretary shall notify the 

9 Secretary of the Treasury as to what portion of the Fund 

10 is not, in the Secretary’s judgment, required to meet cur11 rent withdrawals. The Secretary of the Treasury shall in12 vest such portion of the Fund in public debt securities 

13 with maturities suitable for the needs of such Fund and 

14 bearing interest at rates determined by the Secretary of 

15 the Treasury, taking into consideration current market 

16 yields on outstanding marketplace obligations of the 

17 United States of comparable maturities. 

18 (c) ADMINISTRATION.— 

19 (1) The Fund shall be administered by the Sec20 retary, acting through the Director of the Office of 

21 Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. 

22 (2) Amounts credited to the Fund shall be 

23 available, without further appropriation, for obliga24 tion and expenditure, and shall remain available 

25 until expended. 


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1 (3) The Secretary may retain such funds as 

2 necessary for the administrative expenses of the 

3 United States, Indian tribes, and the States to ac4 complish the purposes of this subtitle. 

5 (d) EXPENDITURES.—Subject to section 222, 

6 amounts in the Fund may, without fiscal year limitation 

7 and without further appropriation— 

8 (1) be expended by the Secretary for the pur9 poses described in section 222; 

10 (2) be transferred by the Secretary to the Di11 rector of the Bureau of Land Management, the 

12 Chief of the Forest Service, the Director of the Na13 tional Park Service, the Director of the United 

14 States Fish and Wildlife Service, or the head of any 

15 other Federal agency, that develops, implements, 

16 and has the ability to carry out all or a significant 

17 portion of a reclamation program under this subtitle; 

18 or 

19 (3) be transferred by the Secretary to an Indian 

20 tribe or a State with an approved reclamation pro21 gram, as provided in subsection (e). 

22 (e) STATE AND TRIBAL RECLAMATION PROGRAMS.— 

23 (1) Each State having within the borders of the 

24 State, or tribe having within the borders of the res25 ervation of the tribe, mined land that is eligible for 


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1 reclamation under this title may submit to the Sec2 retary a reclamation program for the land. 

3 (2) If the Secretary determines that a State or 

4 tribe has developed and submitted a program for 

5 reclamation of abandoned mines consistent with the 

6 priorities established under section 222(c) and has 

7 the ability and necessary State or tribal legislation 

8 to implement this subtitle, the Secretary shall— 

9 (A) approve the program; and 

10 (B) grant to the State or tribe the exclu11 sive responsibility and authority to implement 

12 the approved program. 

13 (3) The Secretary shall withdraw the approval 

14 and authorization if the Secretary determines that 

15 the State or tribal program is not in compliance with 

16 procedures, guidelines, and requirements established 

17 by the Secretary. 

18 (4) Subject to paragraph (3), any State pro19 gram in an abandoned hardrock mine State or tribal 

20 program for reclamation of abandoned mines ap21 proved under title IV of the Surface Mining Control 

22 and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1231 et 

23 seq.) before the date of enactment of this Act and 

24 in good standing with the Secretary as of that date 

25 shall be considered approved under this subtitle. 


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1 SEC. 222. USE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE FUND. 

2 (a) USE.— 

3 (1) The Secretary may, subject to the avail4 ability of appropriations, use amounts in the Fund 

5 for the reclamation and restoration of land and 

6 water resources adversely affected by past hardrock 

7 minerals and mining and related activities in aban8 doned hardrock mine States and on Indian land lo9 cated within the exterior boundaries of abandoned 

10 hardrock mine States, including the conduct of ac11 tivities— 

12 (A) to protect public health and safety; 

13 (B) to prevent, abate, treat, and control 

14 water pollution created by abandoned mine 

15 drainage, including activities conducted in wa16 tersheds; 

17 (C) to reclaim and restore abandoned sur18 face and underground mined areas; 

19 (D) to reclaim and restore abandoned mill20 ing and processing areas; 

21 (E) to backfill, seal, or otherwise control 

22 abandoned underground mine entries; 

23 (F) to revegetate land adversely affected 

24 by past mining activities— 

25 (i) to prevent erosion and sedimenta26 tion; and 


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1 (ii) for any other reclamation purpose; 

2 (G) to control surface subsidence due to 

3 abandoned underground mines; and 

4 (H) to enhance fish and wildlife habitat. 

5 (2) Before expending amounts in the Fund for 

6 the purposes described in paragraph (1), the Sec7 retary shall make a determination that no claim 

8 holder, operator, or other person who is legally re9 sponsible under Federal or State law for the rec10 lamation of the mine site can be located before rec11 lamation under this title of the abandoned hardrock 

12 mine site begins. 

13 (b) ALLOCATION.—Of the amounts deposited in the 

14 Fund each fiscal year— 

15 (1) 30 percent shall be allocated by the Sec16 retary for expenditure by the Secretary or, if a State 

17 or Indian tribe has a program approved under sec18 tion 221(e), by the State or Indian tribe, in the 

19 States in which, or on Indian land on which, 

20 hardrock minerals are produced, based on a formula 

21 reflecting existing production in the State or on the 

22 land of the Indian tribe; 

23 (2) 30 percent shall be allocated by the Sec24 retary for expenditure by the Secretary or, if a State 

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1 tion 221(e), by the State or Indian tribe, in the 

2 States and on Indian land using a formula based on 

3 the quantity of hardrock minerals historically pro4 duced in the State or from the Indian land before 

5 the date of enactment of this Act; 

6 (3) 30 percent shall be allocated by the Sec7 retary for expenditures on high priority abandoned 

8 mine sites on Federal and non-Federal land based 

9 on the priorities established in subsection (c); and 

10 (4) 10 percent shall be available to the Sec11 retary for grants under subsection (d). 

12 (c) PRIORITIES.—Expenditures of moneys from the 

13 Fund shall reflect the following priorities in the order stat14 ed: 

15 (1) The protection of public health and safety, 

16 from extreme danger from the adverse effects of 

17 past mineral activities, especially as relates to sur18 face water and groundwater contaminants. 

19 (2) The protection of public health and safety, 

20 from the adverse effects of past mineral activities. 

21 (3) The restoration of land, water, and fish and 

22 wildlife resources previously degraded by the adverse 

23 effects of past mineral activities, which may include 

24 restoration activities in river watershed areas. 


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1 (4) For the years 2013 through 2018, the Sec2 retary shall give first priority to and fully fund 

3 projects to cleanup and reclaim abandoned hardrock 

4 mines— 

5 (A) in States and tribal lands that have 

6 previously been certified for completing their 

7 reclamation obligations under the Surface Min8 ing Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 

9 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.); and 

10 (B) that are currently utilizing funds avail11 able under section 411 of the Surface Mining 

12 Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 

13 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.) to fund the cleanup of 

14 abandoned hardrock mines. The Secretary shall 

15 fund, to the extent that funds are available in 

16 the Abandoned Mine Cleanup Fund, such clean17 ups to the same level as established by the for18 mula established in the Surface Mining Control 

19 and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1201 

20 et seq.) notwithstanding the changes made 

21 under subtitle C of this title. 

22 (d) GRANTS TO PUBLIC ENTITIES AND NONPROFIT

23 ORGANIZATIONS.—The Secretary shall use amounts made 

24 available under subsection (b)(4) to make grants to public 

25 entities (including State fish and game agencies and local 


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1 governments) and nonprofit organizations (based on cri2 teria established by the Secretary by regulation) to carry 

3 out activities that support collaborative restoration 

4 projects to improve fish and wildlife habitat affected by 

5 past hardrock minerals and mining activities, including ac6 tivities that— 

7 (1) improve water quality and quantity; 

8 (2) restore watersheds in which historic mining 

9 dewatered or otherwise fragmented stream habitats; 

10 (3) restore instream habitat conditions nec11 essary to support aquatic species; 

12 (4) restore vegetative cover and streamside 

13 areas to control erosion and improve conditions for 

14 fish and wildlife; 

15 (5) control and remove noxious weeds and 

16 invasive species associated with historic mining dis17 turbances that affect fish and wildlife; 

18 (6) restore fish and wildlife habitat in cases in 

19 which previous hardrock minerals and mining activ20 ity limits fish and wildlife productivity; 

21 (7) protect and restore fish and wildlife habitat 

22 in areas affected by historic minerals and mining ac23 tivity; and 

24 (8) mitigate impacts to watersheds affected by 

25 past hardrock minerals and mining activities. 


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1 (e) HABITAT.—Reclamation and restoration activities 

2 under this subtitle shall include appropriate mitigation 

3 measures to provide for the continuation of any estab4 lished habitat for wildlife in existence prior to the com5 mencement of such activities. 

6 (f) RESPONSE OR REMOVAL ACTIONS.—Reclamation 

7 and restoration activities under this subtitle which con8 stitute a removal or remedial action under section 101 of 

9 the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensa10 tion, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601), shall 

11 be conducted with the concurrence of the Administrator 

12 of the Environmental Protection Agency. The Secretary 

13 and the Administrator shall enter into a memorandum of 

14 understanding to establish procedures for consultation, 

15 concurrence, training, exchange of technical expertise, and 

16 joint activities under the appropriate circumstances, that 

17 provide assurances that reclamation or restoration activi18 ties under this subtitle shall not be conducted in a manner 

19 that increases the costs or likelihood of removal or reme20 dial actions under the Comprehensive Environmental Re21 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 

22 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.), and that avoid oversight by multiple 

23 agencies to the maximum extent practicable. 


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1 SEC. 223. ELIGIBLE LANDS AND WATERS. 

2 (a) ELIGIBILITY.—Reclamation expenditures under 

3 this subtitle may be made with respect to Federal, State, 

4 local, tribal, and private land or water resources that tra5 verse or are contiguous to Federal, State, local, tribal, or 

6 private land where such lands or water resources have 

7 been affected by past mineral activities, including any of 

8 the following: 

9 (1) Lands and water resources that were used 

10 for, or affected by, mineral activities and abandoned 

11 or left in an inadequate reclamation status before 

12 the effective date of this Act. 

13 (2) Lands for which the Secretary makes a de14 termination that there is no continuing reclamation 

15 responsibility of a claim holder, operator, or other 

16 person who abandoned the site prior to completion 

17 of required reclamation under State or other Federal 

18 laws. 

19 (b) SPECIFIC SITES AND AREAS NOT ELIGIBLE.— 

20 Sites and areas designated for remedial action pursuant 

21 to the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 

22 1978 (42 U.S.C. 7901 et seq.) or that have been listed 

23 for remedial action pursuant to the Comprehensive Envi24 ronmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 

25 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) shall not be eligible for 

26 expenditures from the Fund under this section. 


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1 (c) INVENTORY.— 

2 (1) The Secretary shall prepare and maintain a 

3 publicly available inventory of abandoned hardrock 

4 minerals mines on public lands and any abandoned 

5 hardrock mineral mines on Indian lands that may be 

6 eligible for expenditures under this subtitle, and 

7 shall deliver a yearly report to the Congress on the 

8 progress in cleanup of such sites. 

9 (2) Not later than 5 years after the date of en10 actment of this Act, and every 5 years thereafter, 

11 the Secretary shall update the inventory described in 

12 paragraph (1). 

13 Subtitle C—Administrative 

14 Provisions 

15 SEC. 231. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

16 This title shall take effect on the date of enactment 

17 of this Act. 

18 SEC. 232. FEES ADJUSTMENTS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall 

20 adjust the fees required by section 211 to reflect changes 

21 in the Consumer Price Index published by the Bureau of 

22 Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor every 5 years 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act, or more frequently 

24 if the Secretary determines an adjustment to be reason25 able. 


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1 (b) NOTICE.—The Secretary shall provide claimants 

2 notice of any adjustment made under this section not later 

3 than July 1 of any year in which the adjustment is made. 

4 (c) APPLICATION.—A fee adjustment under this sec5 tion shall begin to apply in the calendar year following 

6 the calendar year in which it is made. 

7 SEC. 233. INSPECTION AND MONITORING. 

8 (a) INSPECTIONS.—The Secretary of the Interior 

9 shall make inspections of mineral activities so as to ensure 

10 compliance with the requirements of this title. 

11 (b) ANCILLARY POWERS.—In connection with any 

12 hearing, inquiry, investigation, or audit under this title, 

13 the Secretary may take any of the following actions: 

14 (1) Require, by special or general order, any 

15 person to submit in writing such affidavits and an16 swers to questions as the Secretary concerned may 

17 reasonably prescribe, which submission shall be 

18 made within such reasonable period and under oath 

19 or otherwise, as may be necessary. 

20 (2) Administer oaths. 

21 (3) Require by subpoena the attendance and 

22 testimony of witnesses and the production of all 

23 books, papers, records, documents, matter, and ma24 terials, as such Secretary may request. 


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1 (4) Order testimony to be taken by deposition 

2 before any person who is designated by such Sec3 retary and who has the power to administer oaths, 

4 and to compel testimony and the production of evi5 dence in the same manner as authorized under para6 graph (3) of this subsection. 

7 (5) Pay witnesses the same fees and mileage as 

8 are paid in like circumstances in the courts of the 

9 United States. 

10 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—In cases of refusal to obey a 

11 subpoena served upon any person under this section, the 

12 district court of the United States for any district in which 

13 such person is found, resides, or transacts business, upon 

14 application by the Attorney General at the request of the 

15 Secretary concerned and after notice to such person, shall 

16 have jurisdiction to issue an order requiring such person 

17 to appear and produce documents before the Secretary 

18 concerned. Any failure to obey such order of the court may 

19 be punished by such court as contempt thereof and subject 

20 to a penalty of up to $10,000 a day. 

21 (d) ENTRY AND ACCESS.—Without advance notice 

22 and upon presentation of appropriate credentials, the Sec23 retary or any authorized representative thereof— 

24 (1) shall have the right of entry to, upon, or 

25 through the site of any claim, mineral activities, or 


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1 any premises in which any records required to be 

2 maintained under this title are located; 

3 (2) may at reasonable times, and without delay, 

4 have access to records, inspect any monitoring 

5 equipment, or review any method of operation re6 quired under this title; 

7 (3) may engage in any work and do all things 

8 necessary or expedient to implement and administer 

9 the provisions of this title; and 

10 (4) may, if accompanied by any appropriate law 

11 enforcement officer, or an appropriate law enforce12 ment officer alone, stop and inspect any motorized 

13 form of transportation which is not on a claim site 

14 if he or she has probable cause to believe such vehi15 cle is carrying hardrock minerals, concentrates, or 

16 products derived therefrom from a claim site on 

17 Federal lands or allocated to such claim site. Such 

18 inspection shall be for the purpose of determining 

19 whether the operator of such vehicle has the docu20 mentation required by law, if such documentation is 

21 required under this title. 

22 SEC. 234. REGULATIONS. 

23 The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 

24 Agriculture shall issue such regulations as are necessary 

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1 title B, subtitle C, subtitle D, and subtitle E that affect 

2 the Forest Service shall be joint regulations issued by both 

3 Secretaries, and shall be issued no later than 180 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

5 SEC. 235. AVAILABILITY OF PUBLIC RECORDS. 

6 Copies of records, reports, inspection materials, or in7 formation obtained by the Secretary of the Interior or the 

8 Secretary of Agriculture under this title shall be made im9 mediately available to the public, consistent with section 

10 552 of title 5, United States Code, in central and suffi11 cient locations in the county, multicounty, and State area 

12 of mineral activity or reclamation so that such items are 

13 conveniently available to residents in the area proposed or 

14 approved for mineral activities and on the Internet. 

Æ 


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