IB 

Union Calendar No. 384 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6160 

[Report No. 111–644] 

To develop a rare earth materials program, to amend the National Materials 

and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act of 1980, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 22, 2010 

Mrs. DAHLKEMPER (for herself, Mr. LEWIS of California, Mr. COFFMAN of 

Colorado, Mr. GORDON of Tennessee, and Mr. CARNAHAN) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science and Technology 

SEPTEMBER 28, 2010 

Additional sponsors: Mr. MCMAHON and Mr. LIPINSKI

SEPTEMBER 28, 2010 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on September 20, 2010] 


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A BILL 

To develop a rare earth materials program, to amend the 

National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and 

Development Act of 1980, and for other purposes. 


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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 ‘‘Rare Earths and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 

6 2010’’. 

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

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—RARE EARTH MATERIALS 

Sec. 101. Rare earth materials program. 

Sec. 102. Rare earth materials loan guarantee program. 

TITLE II—NATIONAL MATERIALS AND MINERALS POLICY, 

RESEARCH, AND DEVELOPMENT 

Sec. 201. Amendments to National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and 

Development Act of 1980. 

Sec. 202. Repeal. 

9 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT12 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate Congressional com13 mittees’’ means the Committee on Science and Tech14 nology of the House of Representatives and the Com15 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

16 and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

17 of the Senate. 

18 (2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

19 means the Department of Energy. 


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1 (3) RARE EARTH MATERIALS.—The term ‘‘rare 

2 earth materials’’ means any of the following chemical 

3 elements in any of their physical forms or chemical 

4 combinations: 

5 (A) Scandium. 

6 (B) Yttrium. 

7 (C) Lanthanum. 

8 (D) Cerium. 

9 (E) Praseodymium. 

10 (F) Neodymium. 

11 (G) Promethium. 

12 (H) Samarium. 

13 (I) Europium. 

14 (J) Gadolinium. 

15 (K) Terbium. 

16 (L) Dysprosium. 

17 (M) Holmium. 

18 (N) Erbium. 

19 (O) Thulium. 

20 (P) Ytterbium. 

21 (Q) Lutetium. 

22 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

23 the Secretary of Energy. 


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1 TITLE I—RARE EARTH 

2 MATERIALS 

3 SEC. 101. RARE EARTH MATERIALS PROGRAM. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the De6 partment a program of research, development, dem7 onstration, and commercial application to assure the 

8 long-term, secure, and sustainable supply of rare 

9 earth materials sufficient to satisfy the national secu10 rity, economic well-being, and industrial production 

11 needs of the United States. 

12 (2) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—The program shall 

13 support activities to— 

14 (A) better characterize and quantify virgin 

15 stocks of rare earth materials using theoretical 

16 geochemical research; 

17 (B) explore, discover, and recover rare earth 

18 materials using advanced science and technology; 

19 (C) improve methods for the extraction, 

20 processing, use, recovery, and recycling of rare 

21 earth materials; 

22 (D) improve the understanding of the per23 formance, processing, and adaptability in engi24 neering designs of rare earth materials; 


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1 (E) identify and test alternative materials 

2 that can be substituted for rare earth materials 

3 in particular applications; 

4 (F) engineer and test applications that— 

5 (i) use recycled rare earth materials; 

6 (ii) use alternative materials; or 

7 (iii) seek to minimize rare earth mate8 rials content; and 

9 (G) collect, catalogue, archive, and dissemi10 nate information on rare earth materials, in11 cluding scientific and technical data generated 

12 by the research and development activities sup13 ported under this section. 

14 (3) IMPROVED PROCESSES AND TECH15 NOLOGIES.—To the maximum extent practicable, the 

16 Secretary shall support new or significantly improved 

17 processes and technologies as compared to those cur18 rently in use in the rare earth materials industry. 

19 (4) EXPANDING PARTICIPATION.—The Secretary 

20 shall encourage— 

21 (A) multidisciplinary collaborations among 

22 program participants; and 

23 (B) extensive opportunities for students at 

24 institutions of higher education, including instiVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:34 Sep 28, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H6160.RH H6160

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1 tutions listed under section 371(a) of the Higher 

2 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)). 

3 (5) CONSISTENCY.—The program shall be con4 sistent with the policies and programs in the Na5 tional Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and 

6 Development Act of 1980 (30 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). 

7 (6) INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION.—In car8 rying out the program, the Secretary shall collabo9 rate, to the extent practicable, with the relevant direc10 torates of the European Commission to coordinate ac11 tivities of mutual interest and avoid duplication of ef12 fort. 

13 (b) PLAN.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Within 180 days after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act and biennially there16 after, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the 

17 appropriate Congressional committees a plan to carry 

18 out the program established under subsection (a). 

19 (2) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS.—The plan shall 

20 include a description of— 

21 (A) the research and development activities 

22 to be carried out by the program during the sub23 sequent 2 years; 

24 (B) the expected contributions of the pro25 gram to the creation of innovative methods and 


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1 technologies for the efficient and sustainable pro2 vision of rare earth materials to the domestic 

3 economy; 

4 (C) the criteria to be used to evaluate appli5 cations for loan guarantees under section 1706 of 

6 the Energy Policy Act of 2005; 

7 (D) any projects receiving loan guarantee 

8 support under such section and the status of such 

9 projects; 

10 (E) how the program is promoting the 

11 broadest possible participation by academic, in12 dustrial, and other contributors; and 

13 (F) actions taken or proposed that reflect 

14 recommendations from the assessment conducted 

15 under subsection (c) or the Secretary’s rationale 

16 for not taking action pursuant to any rec17 ommendation from such assessment for plans 

18 submitted following the completion of the assess19 ment under such subsection. 

20 (3) CONSULTATION.—In preparing each plan 

21 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with 

22 appropriate representatives of industry, institutions 

23 of higher education, Department of Energy national 

24 laboratories, professional and technical societies, and 

25 other entities, as determined by the Secretary. 


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1 (c) ASSESSMENT.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—After the program has been in 

3 operation for 4 years, the Secretary shall offer to 

4 enter into a contract with the National Academy of 

5 Sciences under which the National Academy shall 

6 conduct an assessment of the program under sub7 section (a). 

8 (2) INCLUSIONS.—The assessment shall include 

9 the recommendation of the National Academy of 

10 Sciences that the program should be— 

11 (A) continued, accompanied by a descrip12 tion of any improvements needed in the pro13 gram; or 

14 (B) terminated, accompanied by a descrip15 tion of the lessons learned from the execution of 

16 the program. 

17 (3) AVAILABILITY.—The assessment shall be 

18 made available to Congress and the public upon com19 pletion. 

20 SEC. 102. RARE EARTH MATERIALS LOAN GUARANTEE PRO21 GRAM. 

22 (a) AMENDMENT.—Title XVII of the Energy Policy 

23 Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16511 et seq.) is amended by adding 

24 at the end the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 1706. TEMPORARY PROGRAM FOR RARE EARTH MATE2 RIALS REVITALIZATION. 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—As part of the program established 

4 in section 101 of the Rare Earths and Critical Materials 

5 Revitalization Act of 2010, the Secretary is authorized to 

6 make guarantees under this title for the commercial appli7 cation of new or significantly improved technologies (com8 pared to technologies currently in use in the United States 

9 at the time the guarantee is issued) for the following cat10 egories of projects: 

11 ‘‘(1) The separation and recovery of rare earth 

12 materials from ores or other sources. 

13 ‘‘(2) The preparation of rare earth materials in 

14 oxide, metal, alloy, or other forms needed for national 

15 security, economic well-being, or industrial produc16 tion purposes. 

17 ‘‘(3) The application of rare earth materials in 

18 the production of improved— 

19 ‘‘(A) magnets; 

20 ‘‘(B) batteries; 

21 ‘‘(C) refrigeration systems; 

22 ‘‘(D) optical systems; 

23 ‘‘(E) electronics; and 

24 ‘‘(F) catalysis. 

25 ‘‘(4) The application of rare earth materials in 

26 other uses, as determined by the Secretary. 


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1 ‘‘(b) TIMELINESS.—The Secretary shall seek to mini2 mize delay in approving loan guarantee applications, con3 sistent with appropriate protection of taxpayer interests. 

4 ‘‘(c) COOPERATION.—To the maximum extent prac5 ticable, the Secretary shall cooperate with appropriate pri6 vate sector participants to achieve a complete rare earth 

7 materials production capability in the United States with8 in 5 years after the date of enactment of the Rare Earths 

9 and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010. 

10 ‘‘(d) DOMESTIC SUPPLY CHAIN.—In support of the ob11 jective in subsection (c) to achieve a rare earth materials 

12 production capability in the United States that includes the 

13 complete value chain described in paragraphs (1) through 

14 (4) of subsection (a), the Secretary may not award a guar15 antee for a project unless the project’s proponent provides 

16 to the Secretary an assurance that the loan or guarantee 

17 shall be used to support the separation, recovery, prepara18 tion, or manufacturing of rare earth materials in the 

19 United States for customers within the United States unless 

20 insufficient domestic demand for such materials results in 

21 excess capacity. 

22 ‘‘(e) SUNSET.—The authority to enter into guarantees 

23 under this section shall expire on September 30, 2015.’’. 

24 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

25 contents of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 is amended by 


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1 inserting after the item relating to section 1705 the fol2 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 1706. Temporary program for rare earth materials revitalization.’’. 

3 TITLE II—NATIONAL MATERIALS 

4 AND MINERALS POLICY, RE5 SEARCH, AND DEVELOPMENT 

6 SEC. 201. AMENDMENTS TO NATIONAL MATERIALS AND 

7 MINERALS POLICY, RESEARCH AND DEVELOP8 MENT ACT OF 1980. 

9 (a) PROGRAM PLAN.—Section 5 of the National Mate10 rials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act 

11 of 1980 (30 U.S.C. 1604) is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘date of enactment of this Act’’ 

13 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘date of enact14 ment of the Rare Earths and Critical Materials Revi15 talization Act of 2010’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘Federal Co17 ordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and 

18 Technology’’ and inserting ‘‘National Science and 

19 Technology Council,’’; 

20 (3) in subsection (c)— 

21 (A) by striking ‘‘the Federal Emergency’’ 

22 and all that follows through ‘‘Agency, and’’; 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘appropriate shall’’ and in24 serting ‘‘appropriate, shall’’; 

25 (C) by striking paragraph (1); 


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1 (D) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘in the 

2 case’’ and all that follows through ‘‘subsection,’’ 

3 (E) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

4 paragraph (1); and 

5 (F) by amending paragraph (3) to read as 

6 follows: 

7 ‘‘(2) assess the adequacy, accessibility, and sta8 bility of the supply of materials necessary to main9 tain national security, economic well-being, and in10 dustrial production.’’; 

11 (4) by striking subsections (d) and (e); and 

12 (5) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection 

13 (d). 

14 (b) POLICY.—Section 3 of such Act (30 U.S.C. 1602) 

15 is amended— 

16 (1) by striking ‘‘The Congress declares that it’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘It’’; and 

18 (2) by striking ‘‘The Congress further declares 

19 that implementation’’ and inserting ‘‘Implementa20 tion’’. 

21 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.—Section 4 of such Act (30 

22 U.S.C. 1603) is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘For the purpose’’ and all that 

24 follows through ‘‘declares that the’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘The’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘departments and agencies,’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘departments and agencies to implement the 

3 policies set forth in section 3’’. 

4 SEC. 202. REPEAL. 

5 Title II of Public Law 98–373 (30 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.; 

6 98 Stat. 1248), also known as the National Critical Mate7 rials Act of 1984, is repealed. 


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hsrobinson on DSK69SOYB1PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 384 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6160 

[Report No. 111–644] 

A BILL 

To develop a rare earth materials program, to 

for other purposes. icy, Research and Development Act of 1980, and amend the National Materials and Minerals PolSEPTEMBER 28, 2010 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


hsrobinson on DSK69SOYB1PROD with BILLS