TITLE I—DEVELOPMENT OF DO-
MESTIC SOURCES OF STRA-
TEGIC 
AND 
CRITICAL 
MIN-
ERALS 
SEC. 101. IMPROVING DEVELOPMENT OF STRATEGIC AND 
CRITICAL MINERALS. 
Domestic mines that will provide strategic and critical 
minerals shall be considered an ‘‘infrastructure project’’ as 
described in Presidential Order ‘‘Improving Performance of 
Federal Permitting and Review of Infrastructure Projects’’ 
dated March 22, 2012. 
SEC. 102. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE LEAD AGENCY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The lead agency with responsibility 
for issuing a mineral exploration or mine permit shall ap-
point a project lead who shall coordinate and consult with 
other agencies, cooperating agencies, project proponents and 
contractors to ensure that agencies minimize delays, set and 
adhere to timelines and schedules for completion of reviews, 
set clear permitting goals and track progress against those 
goals. 
(b) The lead agency with responsibility for issuing a 
mineral exploration or mine permit shall determine any 
such action would not constitute a major Federal action 
significantly affecting the quality of the human environ-
ment within the meaning of the National Environmental 
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Policy Act of 1969 if the procedural and substantive safe-
guards of the lead agency’s permitting process alone, any 
applicable State permitting process alone, or a combination 
of the two processes together provide an adequate mecha-
nism to ensure that environmental factors are taken into 
account. 
(c) The lead agency with responsibility for issuing a 
mineral exploration or mine permit shall enhance govern-
ment coordination on permitting and review by avoiding 
duplicative reviews, minimizing paperwork and engaging 
other agencies and stakeholders early in the process. The 
lead agency shall consider the following best practices: 
(1) Deferring to and relying upon baseline data, 
analysis and reviews preformed by State agencies 
with jurisdiction over the proposed project. 
(2) Conducting reviews concurrently rather than 
sequentially to the extent practicable and when such 
concurrent review will expedite rather than delay a 
decision. 
(d) At the request of a project proponent, the project 
lead of the agency with responsibility for issuing a mineral 
exploration or mine permit shall enter into an agreement 
with the project proponent and other cooperating agencies 
that sets time limits for each part of the permit review proc-
ess including the following: 
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(1) The decision on whether to prepare a docu-
ment required under the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969. 
(2) A determination of the scope of any docu-
ment required under the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969. 
(3) The scope of and schedule for the baseline 
studies required to prepare a document required 
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969. 
(4) Preparation of any draft document required 
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969. 
(5) Preparation of a final document required 
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969. 
(6) Consultations required under applicable 
laws. 
(7) Submission and review of any comments re-
quired under applicable law. 
(8) Publication of any public notices required 
under applicable law. 
(9) A final or any interim decisions. 
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(e) In no case should the total review process described 
in subsection (d) exceed 30 months unless agreed to by the 
signatories of the agreement. 
(f) The lead agency is not required to address agency 
or public comments that were not submitted during the pub-
lic comment periods provided by the lead agency or other-
wise required by law. 
(g) The lead agency will determine the amount of fi-
nancial assurance for reclamation of a mineral exploration 
or mining site, which must cover the estimated cost if the 
lead agency were to contract with a third party to reclaim 
the operations according to the reclamation plan, including 
construction and maintenance costs for any treatment fa-
cilities necessary to meet Federal, State or tribal environ-
mental standards. 
SEC. 103. CONSERVATION OF THE RESOURCE. 
In developing the mineral exploration or mine permit, 
the priority of the lead agency shall be to maximize the de-
velopment of the mineral resource, while mitigating envi-
ronmental impacts, so that more of the mineral resource 
can be brought to the market place. 
SEC. 104. FEDERAL REGISTER PROCESS FOR MINERAL EX-
PLORATION AND MINING PROJECTS. 
(a) PREPARATION OF FEDERAL NOTICES FOR MIN-
ERAL
EXPLORATION
AND
MINE
DEVELOPMENT 
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PROJECTS.—The preparation of Federal Register notices 
required by law associated with the issuance of a mineral 
exploration or mine permit shall be delegated to the organi-
zation level within the agency responsible for issuing the 
mineral exploration or mine permit. All Federal Register 
notices regarding official document availability, announce-
ments of meetings, or notices of intent to undertake an ac-
tion shall be originated and transmitted to the Federal Reg-
ister from the office where documents are held, meetings are 
held, or the activity is initiated. 
(b) DEPARTMENTAL REVIEW OF FEDERAL REGISTER 
NOTICES
FOR
MINERAL
EXPLORATION
AND
MINING 
PROJECTS.—Absent any extraordinary circumstance or ex-
cept as otherwise required by any Act of Congress, each Fed-
eral Register notice described in subsection (a) shall under-
go any required reviews within the Department of the Inte-
rior or the Department of Agriculture and be published in 
its final form in the Federal Register no later than 30 days 
after its initial preparation. 
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TITLE II—JUDICIAL REVIEW OF 
AGENCY ACTIONS RELATING 
TO EXPLORATION AND MINE 
PERMITS 
SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS FOR TITLE. 
In this title the term ‘‘covered civil action’’ means a 
civil action containing a claim under section 702 of title 
5, United States Code, regarding agency action affecting 
a mineral exploration or mine permit. 
SEC. 202. TIMELY FILINGS. 
A covered civil action is barred unless filed no later 
than the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date 
of the final Federal agency action to which it relates. 
SEC. 203. EXPEDITION IN HEARING AND DETERMINING THE 
ACTION. 
The court shall endeavor to hear and determine any 
covered civil action as expeditiously as possible. 
SEC. 204. LIMITATION ON PROSPECTIVE RELIEF. 
In a covered civil action, the court shall not grant or 
approve any prospective relief unless the court finds that 
such relief is narrowly drawn, extends no further than nec-
essary to correct the violation of a legal requirement, and 
is the least intrusive means necessary to correct that viola-
tion. 
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SEC. 205. LIMITATION ON ATTORNEYS’ FEES. 
Sections 504 of title 5, United States Code, and 2412 
of title 28, United States Code (together commonly called 
the Equal Access to Justice Act) do not apply to a covered 
civil action, nor shall any party in such a covered civil 
action receive payment from the Federal Government for 
their attorneys’ fees, expenses, and other court costs. 
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Union Calendar No. 423 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4402 
[Report No. 112–583, Part I] 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of the Interior and the 
Secretary of Agriculture to more efficiently de-
velop domestic sources of the minerals and min-
eral materials of strategic and critical importance 
to United States economic and national security 
and manufacturing competitiveness. 
JULY 9, 2012 
Reported from the Committee on Natural Resources with 
an amendment 
JULY 9, 2012 
The Committee on the Judiciary discharged; committed 
to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
the Union and ordered to be printed 
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