hydrologically connected by groundwater shall com-
ply with applicable Federal, State, and, where appro-
priate, local government water quality standards. 
(6) VEGETATION.—(A) The area subject to 
mineral activities shall be vegetated in order to es-
tablish a diverse, effective, and permanent vegetative 
cover of the same seasonal variety native to the area 
subject to mineral activities, capable of self-regen-
eration and plant succession and at least equal in 
extent of cover to the natural revegetation of the 
surrounding area, except that introduced species 
may be used at the discretion of the Secretary, or 
for National Forest System lands the Secretary of 
Agriculture, in consultation with the Director of the 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service, if such in-
troduction of such species is necessary as an interim 
step in, and is part of a program to restore a native 
plant community. In such instances where the com-
plete backfill of an open mine pit is not required 
under paragraph (5), such Secretary shall prescribe 
such vegetation requirements as conform to the ap-
plicable land use plan. 
(B) In order to ensure compliance with sub-
paragraph (A), the period for determining successful 
revegetation shall be 5 full years after the last year 
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of augmented seeding, fertilizing, irrigation, or other 
work, except that such period shall be 10 full years 
where the annual average precipitation is 26 inches 
or less. The period may be a longer time at the dis-
cretion of the Secretary concerned where rainfall or 
other factors indicate that successful revegetation 
may be difficult to achieve or maintain. 
(7) EXCESS WASTE.—(A) Waste material in ex-
cess of that required to comply with paragraph (5) 
shall be transported and placed in approved areas, 
in a controlled manner in such a way so as to assure 
long-term mass stability, to prevent mass movement, 
and to facilitate reclamation. In addition to the 
measures described under paragraph (3), internal 
drainage systems shall be employed, as may be re-
quired, to control erosion and drainage. The design 
of such excess waste material piles shall be certified 
by a qualified professional engineer. 
(B) Excess waste material piles shall be graded 
and contoured to blend with the surrounding topog-
raphy as much as practicable and revegetated in ac-
cordance with paragraph (6). 
(8) SEALING.—All drill holes, and openings on 
the surface associated with underground mineral ac-
tivities, shall be backfilled, sealed, or otherwise con-
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trolled when no longer needed for the conduct of 
mineral activities to ensure protection of the public 
and the environment, protection of groundwater, and 
management of fish and wildlife and livestock. Such 
sealing must be designed and carried out using ma-
terials and methods that will provide long-term pro-
tection. Information regarding the location and na-
ture of sealed drill holes or openings or other areas 
that should remain undisturbed or will require long- 
term maintenance must be placed in the relevant 
land records and provided to the Secretary and the 
appropriate State and local agencies. 
(9) REMOVAL OF STRUCTURES, ETC.—All build-
ings, structures, roads, and equipment constructed, 
used, or improved during mineral activities shall be 
removed, unless the Secretary concerned, in con-
sultation with the affected land managing agency, 
determines that use of the buildings, structures, or 
equipment would be consistent with subsection (a) or 
for environmental monitoring and the Secretary con-
cerned takes ownership of such structures. 
(10) CULTURAL, PALEONTOLOGICAL, AND CAVE 
RESOURCES.—The operator shall make reasonable 
efforts to identify and shall not knowingly disturb, 
alter, injure, or destroy any scientifically important 
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paleontologic remains or any historic, archaeologic, 
or cave-related sites, structure, building, resource, or 
object without including in the plan of operations a 
proposed action to preserve the resource that is ap-
proved by the Secretary prior to the disturbance tak-
ing place. 
(11) DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND
MAINTE-
NANCE OF STRUCTURES, ETC.—All buildings, struc-
tures, roads, and equipment constructed, used, or 
improved during mineral activities shall be designed, 
constructed, and maintained to minimize erosion, sil-
tation, and air pollution and then removed after 
mining, unless the Secretary concerned in consulta-
tion with the affected land managing agency, deter-
mines that use of the buildings, structures, roads, or 
equipment would be consistent with subsection (a) or 
for environmental monitoring, and the Secretary 
concerned takes ownership of such structures, build-
ings, or equipment, or roads. 
(12) DRILL HOLES.—(A) Drilling fluids shall 
not be allowed to flow off the site or otherwise ad-
versely impact water or other natural resources. 
(B) All drill holes shall be drilled, operated, and 
plugged to prevent mixing of water from aquifers, 
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impacts to beneficial uses, and downward or upward 
water loss. 
(13) LEACHING
OPERATIONS
AND
IMPOUND-
MENTS.—Leach pads, tailing impoundments, waste 
rock and overburden, ponds, and solution holding fa-
cilities shall be designed, constructed, and operated 
according to standard engineering practices to 
achieve and maintain the stability of the site and fa-
cilitate reclamation. These facilities shall be con-
structed with a low-permeability liner or contain-
ment system that will detect leaks, and prevent the 
release of solutions to the environment. All leaching 
facilities and impoundments shall be designed and 
operated to withstand a local 24-hour, 100-year 
storm event in addition to the solution expected for 
the facility, unless the Secretary determines that ad-
ditional protections are necessary due to proximity 
to people or endangered species, or threatened spe-
cies or the presence of drinking water supplies. 
(14) FIRE
PREVENTION
AND
CONTROL.—All 
applicable Federal and State fire laws and regula-
tions shall be complied with, including taking all rea-
sonable measures to prevent and suppress fire in the 
project area. 
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(15) TEMPORARY
CESSATION.—During tem-
porary cessation of operations, the operator shall 
maintain the site, and take measures to stabilize the 
excavation and workings, control toxic or deleterious 
materials, and monitor site conditions. After a 5- 
year cessation, the operator shall commence rec-
lamation as described in section 306. 
(c) SPECIAL RULE.—Reclamation activities for a 
mining claim that has been forfeited, relinquished, or 
lapsed, or a plan that has expired or been revoked or sus-
pended, shall continue subject to review and approval by 
the Secretary, or for National Forest System lands the 
Secretary of Agriculture. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘waste material’’ means the mate-
rial resulting from mineral activities involving ex-
traction, beneficiation, and processing, including but 
not limited to tailings, and such material resulting 
from mineral activities involving processing, to the 
extent such material is not subject to subtitle C of 
the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 3251 and 
following) or the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation 
Control Act of 1978 (42 U.S.C. 7901 and following). 
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(2) The term ‘‘ore piles’’ means ore stockpiled 
for beneficiation prior to the completion of mineral 
activities. 
(3) The term ‘‘subgrade ore’’ means ore that is 
too low in grade to be processed at the time of ex-
traction but which could reasonably be processed in 
the foreseeable future. 
(4) The term ‘‘soil’’ means the earthy or sandy 
layer, ranging in thickness from a few inches to sev-
eral feet, composed of finely divided rock debris, of 
whatever origin, mixed with decomposing vegetal and 
animal matter, which forms the surface of the 
ground and in which plants grow or may grow. 
SEC. 307. STATE LAW AND REGULATION. 
(a) STATE LAW.—(1) Any reclamation, land use, en-
vironmental, or public health protection standard or re-
quirement in State or local law or regulation that meets 
or exceeds the requirements of section 306 shall not be 
construed to be inconsistent with any such standard. 
(2) Any bonding standard or requirement in State or 
local law or regulation that meets or exceeds the require-
ments of section 305 shall not be construed to be incon-
sistent with such requirements. 
(3) Any inspection standard or requirement in State 
or local law or regulation that meets or exceeds the re-
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quirements of section 503 shall not be construed to be in-
consistent with such requirements. 
(b) APPLICABILITY
OF OTHER STATE REQUIRE-
MENTS.—(1) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as af-
fecting any toxic substance, solid waste, or air or water 
quality, standard or requirement of any State, county, 
local, or tribal law or regulation, which may be applicable 
to mineral activities on lands subject to this Act. 
(2) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting 
in any way the right of any person to enforce or protect, 
under applicable law, such person’s interest in water re-
sources affected by mineral activities on lands subject to 
this Act. 
(c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—(1) Any State 
may enter into a cooperative agreement with the Sec-
retary, or for National Forest System lands the Secretary 
of Agriculture, for the purposes of such Secretary applying 
such standards and requirements referred to in subsection 
(a) and subsection (b) to mineral activities or reclamation 
on lands subject to this Act. 
(2) In such instances where the proposed mineral ac-
tivities would affect lands not subject to this Act in addi-
tion to lands subject to this Act, in order to approve a 
plan of operations the Secretary concerned shall enter into 
a cooperative agreement with the State that sets forth a 
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common regulatory framework consistent with the envi-
ronmental protection requirements of this Act for the pur-
poses of such plan of operations. 
(3) The Secretary concerned shall not enter into a 
cooperative agreement with any State under this section 
until after notice in the Federal Register and opportunity 
for public comment and hearing. 
(d) PRIOR AGREEMENTS.—Any cooperative agree-
ment or such other understanding between the Secretary 
concerned and any State, or political subdivision thereof, 
relating to the management of mineral activities on lands 
subject to this Act that was in existence on the date of 
enactment of this Act may only continue in force until 1 
year after the date of enactment of this Act. During such 
1-year period, the State and the Secretary shall review the 
terms of the agreement and make changes that are nec-
essary to be consistent with this Act. 
TITLE IV—MINING MITIGATION 
Subtitle A—Abandoned Locatable 
Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund 
SEC. 401. ABANDONED LOCATABLE MINERALS MINE REC-
LAMATION. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—(1) There is established on 
the books of the Treasury of the United States a separate 
account to be known as the Abandoned Locatable Minerals 
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Mine Reclamation Fund (hereinafter in this subtitle re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Fund’’). The Fund shall be administered 
by the Secretary acting through the Director of the Office 
of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. 
(2) The Secretary shall notify the Secretary of the 
Treasury as to what portion of the Fund is not, in the 
Secretary’s judgment, required to meet current with-
drawals. The Secretary of the Treasury shall invest such 
portion of the Fund in public debt securities with matu-
rities suitable for the needs of such Fund and bearing in-
terest at rates determined by the Secretary of the Treas-
ury, taking into consideration current market yields on 
outstanding marketplace obligations of the United States 
of comparable maturities. The income on such investments 
shall be credited to, and form a part of, the Fund. 
(b) AMOUNTS.—The following amounts shall be cred-
ited to the Fund: 
(1) All moneys collected pursuant to section 
506 (relating to enforcement) and section 504 (relat-
ing to citizens suits). 
(2) All permit fees and transfer fees received 
under section 303. 
(3) All donations by persons, corporations, as-
sociations, and foundations for the purposes of this 
subtitle. 
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(4) All amounts deposited in the Fund under 
section 102 (relating to royalties and penalties for 
underreporting). 
(5) All other receipts from fees, royalties, pen-
alties and other sources collected under this Act. 
(6) All amounts received by the United States 
pursuant to section 101 from issuance of patents. 
SEC. 402. USE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE FUND. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized, sub-
ject to appropriations, to use moneys in the Fund for the 
reclamation and restoration of land and water resources 
adversely affected by past mineral activities on lands the 
legal and beneficial title to which resides in the United 
States, land within the exterior boundary of any national 
forest system unit, or other lands described in subsection 
(d) or section 403, including any of the following: 
(1) Protecting public health and safety 
(2) Preventing, abating, treating, and control-
ling water pollution created by abandoned mine 
drainage. 
(3) Reclaiming and restoring abandoned surface 
and underground mined areas. 
(4) Reclaiming and restoring abandoned milling 
and processing areas. 
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(5) Backfilling, sealing, or otherwise control-
ling, abandoned underground mine entries. 
(6) Revegetating land adversely affected by past 
mineral activities in order to prevent erosion and 
sedimentation, to enhance wildlife habitat, and for 
any other reclamation purpose. 
(7) Controlling of surface subsidence due to 
abandoned underground mines. 
(b) PRIORITIES.—Expenditures of moneys from the 
Fund shall reflect the following priorities in the order stat-
ed: 
(1) The protection of public health and safety, 
from extreme danger from the adverse effects of 
past mineral activities, especially as relates to sur-
face water and groundwater contaminants. 
(2) The protection of public health and safety, 
from the adverse effects of past mineral activities. 
(3) The restoration of land, water, and fish and 
wildlife resources previously degraded by the adverse 
effects of past mineral activities. 
(c) HABITAT.—Reclamation and restoration activities 
under this subtitle, particularly those identified under sub-
section (a)(4), shall include appropriate mitigation meas-
ures to provide for the continuation of any established 
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habitat for wildlife in existence prior to the commencement 
of such activities. 
(d) OTHER AFFECTED LANDS.—Where mineral ex-
ploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, or reclamation 
activities have been carried out with respect to any mineral 
which would be a locatable mineral if the legal and bene-
ficial title to the mineral were in the United States, if such 
activities directly affect lands managed by the Bureau of 
Land Management as well as other lands and if the legal 
and beneficial title to more than 50 percent of the affected 
lands resides in the United States, the Secretary is author-
ized, subject to appropriations, to use moneys in the Fund 
for reclamation and restoration under subsection (a) for 
all directly affected lands. 
(e) RESPONSE OR REMOVAL ACTIONS.—Reclamation 
and restoration activities under this subtitle which con-
stitute a removal or remedial action under section 101 of 
the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensa-
tion, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601), shall 
be conducted with the concurrence of the Administrator 
of the Environmental Protection Agency. The Secretary 
and the Administrator shall enter into a Memorandum of 
Understanding to establish procedures for consultation, 
concurrence, training, exchange of technical expertise and 
joint activities under the appropriate circumstances, that 
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provide assurances that reclamation or restoration activi-
ties under this subtitle shall not be conducted in a manner 
that increases the costs or likelihood of removal or reme-
dial actions under the Comprehensive Environmental Re-
sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 
U.S.C. 9601 and following), and that avoid oversight by 
multiple agencies to the maximum extent practicable. 
SEC. 403. ELIGIBLE LANDS AND WATERS. 
(a) ELIGIBILITY.—Reclamation expenditures under 
this subtitle may only be made with respect to Federal 
lands or Indian lands or water resources that traverse or 
are contiguous to Federal lands or Indian lands where 
such lands or water resources have been affected by past 
mineral activities, including any of the following: 
(1) Lands and water resources which were used 
for, or affected by, mineral activities and abandoned 
or left in an inadequate reclamation status before 
the effective date of this Act. 
(2) Lands for which the Secretary makes a de-
termination that there is no continuing reclamation 
responsibility of a claim holder, operator, or other 
person who abandoned the site prior to completion 
of required reclamation under State or other Federal 
laws. 
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(3) Lands for which it can be established that 
such lands do not contain locatable minerals which 
could economically be extracted through the reproc-
essing or remining of such lands, unless such consid-
erations are in conflict with the priorities set forth 
under paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 302(b). 
(b) SPECIFIC SITES AND AREAS NOT ELIGIBLE.— 
The provisions of section 411(d) of the Surface Mining 
Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 
1240a(d)) shall apply to expenditures made from the 
Fund established under this subtitle. 
(c) INVENTORY.—The Secretary shall prepare and 
maintain a publicly available inventory of abandoned 
locatable minerals mines on Federal lands and any aban-
doned mine on Indian lands that may be eligible for ex-
penditures under this subtitle, and shall deliver a yearly 
report to the Congress on the progress in cleanup of such 
sites. 
SEC. 404. FUND EXPENDITURES. 
Moneys available from the Fund may be expended for 
the purposes specified in section 402 directly by the Direc-
tor of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and En-
forcement. The Director may also make such money avail-
able for such purposes to the Director of the Bureau of 
Land Management, the Chief of the United States Forest 
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Service, the Director of the National Park Service, or Di-
rector of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, to 
any other agency of the United States, to an Indian tribe, 
or to any public entity that volunteers to develop and im-
plement, and that has the ability to carry out, all or a 
significant portion of a reclamation program under this 
subtitle. 
SEC. 405. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
Amounts credited to the Fund are authorized to be 
appropriated for the purpose of this subtitle without fiscal 
year limitation. 
Subtitle B—Locatable Minerals 
Community Impact Assistance 
SEC. 421. LOCATABLE MINERALS COMMUNITY IMPACT AS-
SISTANCE. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—(1) There is established on 
the books of the Treasury of the United States a separate 
account to be known as the Locatable Minerals Commu-
nity Impact Assistance Fund (hereinafter in this subtitle 
referred to as the ‘‘Fund’’). The Fund shall be adminis-
tered by the Secretary acting through the Director of the 
Bureau of Land Management. 
(2) Lands for which the Secretary makes a deter-
mination that there is no continuing reclamation responsi-
bility of a claim holder, operator, or other person who 
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abandoned the site prior to completion of required rec-
lamation under State or other Federal laws. 
(b) AMOUNTS.—There shall be credited to the Fund 
all amounts deposited in the Fund under section 111. 
SEC. 422. USE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE FUND. 
Amounts in the Fund shall be available to the Sec-
retary, subject to appropriations, to provide assistance for 
the planning, construction, and maintenance of public fa-
cilities and the provision of public services to States, polit-
ical subdivisions and Indian tribes that are socially or eco-
nomically impacted by mineral activities conducted under 
the general mining laws. 
SEC. 423. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS. 
Moneys deposited into the Fund shall be allocated by 
the Secretary for purposes of section 422 among the 
States within the boundaries of which occurs production 
of locatable minerals from mining claims located under the 
general mining laws and maintained in compliance with 
this Act, or mineral concentrates or products derived from 
locatable minerals from mining claims located under the 
general mining laws and maintained in compliance with 
this Act, as the case may be, in proportion to the amount 
of such production in each such State. 
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TITLE V—ADMINISTRATIVE AND 
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 
Subtitle A—Administrative 
Provisions 
SEC. 501. POLICY FUNCTIONS. 
(a) MINERALS POLICY.—Section 101 of the Mining 
and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 21a) is 
amended— 
(1) in the first sentence by inserting before the 
period at the end the following: ‘‘and to ensure that 
mineral extraction and processing not cause undue 
degradation of the natural and cultural resources of 
the Federal lands’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end thereof the following: 
‘‘It shall also be the responsibility of the Secretary 
of Agriculture to carry out the policy provisions of 
paragraphs (1) and (2) of this section.’’. 
(b) MINERAL DATA.—Section 5(e)(3) of the National 
Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development 
Act of 1980 (30 U.S.C. 1604(e)(3)) is amended by insert-
ing before the period the following: ‘‘, except that for Na-
tional Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall promptly initiate actions to improve the availability 
and analysis of mineral data in Federal land use decision-
making’’. 
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SEC. 502. USER FEES. 
The Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture are 
each authorized to establish and collect from persons sub-
ject to the requirements of this Act such user fees as may 
be necessary to reimburse the United States for the ex-
penses incurred in administering such requirements. Fees 
may be assessed and collected under this section only in 
such manner as may reasonably be expected to result in 
an aggregate amount of the fees collected during any fiscal 
year which does not exceed the aggregate amount of ad-
ministrative expenses referred to in this section. 
SEC. 503. INSPECTION AND MONITORING. 
(a) INSPECTIONS.—(1) The Secretary, or for Na-
tional Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture, 
shall make inspections of mineral activities so as to ensure 
compliance with the environmental protection require-
ments of title III. 
(2) The Secretary concerned shall establish a fre-
quency of inspections for mineral activities conducted 
under a permit issued under title III, but in no event shall 
such inspection frequency be less than one complete in-
spection per calendar quarter or, two per calendar quarter 
in the case of a permit for which the Secretary concerned 
approves an application under section 303(g) (relating to 
temporary cessation of operations). After revegetation has 
been established in accordance with a reclamation plan, 
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such Secretary shall conduct annually 2 complete inspec-
tions. Such Secretary shall have the discretion to modify 
the inspection frequency for mineral activities that are 
conducted on a seasonal basis. Inspections shall continue 
under this subsection until final release of financial assur-
ance. 
(3)(A) Any person who has reason to believe he or 
she is or may be adversely affected by mineral activities 
due to any violation of the environmental protection re-
quirements may request an inspection. The Secretary, or 
for National Forest System lands the Secretary of Agri-
culture, shall determine within 10 working days of receipt 
of the request whether the request states a reason to be-
lieve that a violation exists. If the person alleges and pro-
vides reason to believe that an imminent threat to the en-
vironment or danger to the health or safety of the public 
exists, the 10-day period shall be waived and the inspec-
tion shall be conducted immediately. When an inspection 
is conducted under this paragraph, the Secretary con-
cerned shall notify the person requesting the inspection, 
and such person shall be allowed to accompany the Sec-
retary concerned or the Secretary’s authorized representa-
tive during the inspection. The Secretary shall not incur 
any liability for allowing such person to accompany an au-
thorized representative. The identity of the person sup-
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