I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 998 
To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to require the Secretary of the Interior 
to convey to a State all right, title, and interest in and to a percentage 
of the amount of royalties and other amounts required to be paid to 
the State under that Act with respect to public land and deposits in 
the State, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 6, 2019 
Ms. CHENEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To amend the Mineral Leasing Act to require the Secretary 
of the Interior to convey to a State all right, title, and 
interest in and to a percentage of the amount of royalties 
and other amounts required to be paid to the State 
under that Act with respect to public land and deposits 
in the State, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘State Mineral Revenue 
Protection Act of 2019’’. 
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SEC. 2. CONVEYANCE TO STATES OF PROPERTY INTEREST 
IN STATE SHARE OF ROYALTIES AND OTHER 
PAYMENTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 35 of the Mineral Leasing 
Act (30 U.S.C. 191) is amended— 
(1) in the first sentence of subsection (a), by 
striking ‘‘shall be paid into the Treasury’’ and in-
serting ‘‘shall, except as provided in subsection (b), 
be paid into the Treasury’’; 
(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(b) CONVEYANCE TO STATES OF PROPERTY INTER-
EST IN STATE SHARE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, on request of a State and in lieu 
of any payments to the State under subsection (a), 
the Secretary of the Interior shall convey to the 
State all right, title, and interest in and to the per-
centage specified in that subsection for that State of 
all amounts otherwise required to be paid into the 
Treasury under that subsection from sales, bonuses, 
royalties (including interest charges), and rentals for 
all public land or deposits located in the State. 
‘‘(2) AMOUNT.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, after a conveyance to a State under 
paragraph (1), any person shall pay directly to the 
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State any amount owed by the person for which the 
right, title, and interest has been conveyed to the 
State under this subsection. 
‘‘(3) NOTICE.—The Secretary of the Interior 
shall promptly provide to each holder of a lease of 
public land to which subsection (a) applies that are 
located in a State to which right, title, and interest 
is conveyed under this subsection notice that— 
‘‘(A) the Secretary of the Interior has con-
veyed to the State all right, title, and interest 
in and to the amounts referred to in paragraph 
(1); and 
‘‘(B) the leaseholder is required to pay the 
amounts directly to the State.’’; and 
(3) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ‘‘and ex-
cept as provided in subsection (b)’’ before ‘‘, any 
rentals’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) Section 6(a) of the Mineral Leasing Act for 
Acquired Lands (30 U.S.C. 355(a)) is amended— 
(A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘Sub-
ject to the provisions of section 35(b) of the 
Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 191(b)), all’’ 
and inserting ‘‘All’’; and 
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(B) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘of 
the Act of February 25, 1920 (41 Stat. 450; 30 
U.S.C. 191)’’ and inserting ‘‘of the Mineral 
Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 191)’’. 
(2) Section 20(a) of the Geothermal Steam Act 
of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 1019(a)) is amended in the mat-
ter preceding paragraph (1), in the second sentence, 
by striking ‘‘the provisions of subsection (b) of sec-
tion 35 of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 
191(b)) and’’. 
(3) Section 205(f) of the Federal Oil and Gas 
Royalty Management Act of 1982 (30 U.S.C. 
1735(f)) is amended by striking ‘‘Such costs’’ 
through ‘‘mineral activities.’’. 
Æ 
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