mine site is located has been given an oppor-
tunity to review and, if necessary, comment on 
the grant of the Good Samaritan permit; 
(C) in the case of a project proposed to be 
carried out under the Good Samaritan permit 
partially or entirely on land owned by the 
United States, pursuant to subsection (l), the 
head of the applicable Federal land management 
agency has signed a decision document approv-
ing the proposed project; and 
(D) the Administrator or head of the Fed-
eral land management agency, as applicable, has 
provided— 
(i) environmental review and public 
comment procedures required by subsection 
(l); and 
(ii) a public hearing under that sub-
section, if requested. 
(2) DEADLINE.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall 
grant or deny a Good Samaritan permit by not 
later than— 
(i) the date that is 180 days after the 
date of receipt by the Administrator of an 
application for the Good Samaritan permit 
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that, as determined by the Administrator, is 
complete and meets all applicable require-
ments of subsection (c); or 
(ii) such later date as may be deter-
mined by the Administrator with notifica-
tion provided to the applicant. 
(B) CONSTRUCTIVE DENIAL.—If the Admin-
istrator fails to grant or deny a Good Samaritan 
permit by the applicable deadline described in 
subparagraph (A), the application shall be con-
sidered to be denied. 
(3) DISCRETIONARY ACTION.—The issuance of a 
permit by the Administrator and the approval of a 
project by the head of an applicable Federal land 
management agency shall be considered to be discre-
tionary actions taken in the public interest. 
(n) EFFECT OF PERMITS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A Good Samaritan and any 
cooperating person undertaking remediation activities 
identified in, carried out pursuant to, and in compli-
ance with, a covered permit— 
(A) shall be considered to be in compliance 
with all requirements (including permitting re-
quirements) under the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) (including 
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any law or regulation implemented by a State or 
Indian tribe under section 402 or 404 of that Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1342, 1344)) and the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Li-
ability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) dur-
ing the term of the covered permit, after the ter-
mination of the Good Samaritan permit, and 
after declining to convert an investigative sam-
pling permit into a Good Samaritan permit, as 
applicable; 
(B) shall not be required to obtain a permit 
under, or to comply with, section 301, 302, 306, 
307, 402, or 404 of the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1311, 1312, 1316, 1317, 
1342, 1344), or any State or Tribal standards or 
regulations approved by the Administrator under 
those sections of that Act, during the term of the 
covered permit, after the termination of the Good 
Samaritan permit, and after declining to con-
vert an investigative sampling permit into a 
Good Samaritan permit, as applicable; and 
(C) shall not be required to obtain any au-
thorizations, licenses, or permits that would oth-
erwise not need to be obtained if the remediation 
was conducted pursuant to section 121 of the 
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Comprehensive Environmental Response, Com-
pensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 
9621). 
(2) UNAUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person (including a 
Good Samaritan or any cooperating person) that 
carries out any activity, including activities re-
lating 
to 
mineral 
exploration, 
processing, 
beneficiation, or mining, including development, 
that is not authorized by the applicable covered 
permit shall be subject to all applicable law. 
(B) LIABILITY.—Any activity not author-
ized by a covered permit, as determined by the 
Administrator, may be subject to liability and 
enforcement under all applicable law, includ-
ing— 
(i) the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); and 
(ii) the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act 
of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.). 
(3) NO ENFORCEMENT OR LIABILITY FOR GOOD 
SAMARITANS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graphs (D) and (E), a Good Samaritan or co-
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operating person that is conducting a remedi-
ation activity identified in, pursuant to, and in 
compliance with a covered permit shall not be 
subject to enforcement or liability described in 
subparagraph (B) for— 
(i) any actions undertaken that are 
authorized by the covered permit; or 
(ii) any past, present, or future re-
leases, threats of releases, or discharges of 
hazardous substances, pollutants, or con-
taminants at or from the abandoned 
hardrock mine site that is the subject of the 
covered permit (including any releases, 
threats of releases, or discharges that oc-
curred prior to the grant of the covered per-
mit). 
(B) 
ENFORCEMENT
OR
LIABILITY
DE-
SCRIBED.—Enforcement or liability referred to 
in subparagraph (A) is enforcement, civil or 
criminal penalties, citizen suits and any liabil-
ities for response costs, natural resource damage, 
or contribution under— 
(i) the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) (including 
under any law or regulation administered 
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by a State or Indian tribe under that Act); 
or 
(ii) the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act 
of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.). 
(C) DURATION
OF
APPLICABILITY.—Sub-
paragraph (A) shall apply during the term of the 
covered permit, after the termination of the Good 
Samaritan permit, and after declining to con-
vert an investigative sampling permit into a 
Good Samaritan permit, as applicable. 
(D) OTHER PARTIES.—Nothing in subpara-
graph (A) limits the liability of any person that 
is not described in that subparagraph. 
(E) DECLINE
IN
ENVIRONMENTAL
CONDI-
TIONS.—Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), if a 
Good Samaritan or cooperating person fails to 
comply with any term, condition, or limitation 
of a covered permit and that failure results in 
surface water quality or other environmental 
conditions that the Administrator determines are 
measurably worse than the baseline conditions as 
described in the permit (in the case of a Good 
Samaritan permit) or the conditions as de-
scribed pursuant to subsection (d)(3)(B), if ap-
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plicable (in the case of an investigative sampling 
permit), at the abandoned hardrock mine site, 
the Administrator shall— 
(i) notify the Good Samaritan or co-
operating person, as applicable, of the fail-
ure to comply; and 
(ii) require the Good Samaritan or the 
cooperating person, as applicable, to under-
take reasonable measures, as determined by 
the Administrator, to return surface water 
quality or other environmental conditions to 
those conditions. 
(F) FAILURE TO CORRECT.—Subparagraph 
(A) shall not apply to a Good Samaritan or co-
operating person that fails to take any actions 
required under subparagraph (E)(ii) within a 
reasonable period of time, as established by the 
Administrator. 
(G) MINOR OR CORRECTED PERMIT VIOLA-
TIONS.—For purposes of this paragraph, the fail-
ure to comply with a term, condition, or limita-
tion of a Good Samaritan permit or investiga-
tive sampling permit shall not be considered a 
permit violation or noncompliance with that 
permit if— 
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(i) that failure or noncompliance does 
not result in a measurable adverse impact, 
as determined by the Administrator, on 
water quality or other environmental condi-
tions; or 
(ii) the Good Samaritan or cooper-
ating person complies with subparagraph 
(E)(ii). 
(o) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION OF ADVERSE EVENT.—A 
Good Samaritan shall notify all appropriate Federal, 
State, Tribal, and local entities of any unplanned or pre-
viously unknown release of historic mine residue caused by 
the actions of the Good Samaritan or any cooperating per-
son in accordance with— 
(1) section 103 of the Comprehensive Environ-
mental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 
1980 (42 U.S.C. 9603); 
(2) section 304 of the Emergency Planning and 
Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 
11004); 
(3) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); 
(4) any other applicable provision of Federal 
law; and 
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(5) any other applicable provision of State, Trib-
al, or local law. 
(p) GRANT ELIGIBILITY.—A remediation project con-
ducted under a Good Samaritan permit shall be eligible for 
funding pursuant to— 
(1) section 319 of the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1329), for activities that are 
eligible for funding under that section; and 
(2) section 104(k) of the Comprehensive Environ-
mental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 
1980 (42 U.S.C. 9604(k)), subject to the condition 
that the recipient of the funding is otherwise eligible 
under that section to receive a grant to assess or re-
mediate contamination at the site covered by the 
Good Samaritan permit. 
(q) EMERGENCY AUTHORITY AND LIABILITY.— 
(1) EMERGENCY AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this 
section affects the authority of— 
(A) the Administrator to take any respon-
sive action authorized by law; or 
(B) a Federal, State, Tribal, or local agency 
to carry out any emergency authority, including 
an emergency authority provided under Federal, 
State, Tribal, or local law. 
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(2) LIABILITY.—Except as specifically provided 
in this Act, nothing in this Act, a Good Samaritan 
permit, or an investigative sampling permit limits 
the liability of any person (including a Good Samari-
tan or any cooperating person) under any provision 
of law. 
(r) TERMINATION OF GOOD SAMARITAN PERMIT.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—A Good Samaritan permit 
shall terminate, as applicable— 
(A) on inspection and notice from the Ad-
ministrator to the recipient of the Good Samari-
tan permit that the permitted work has been 
completed in accordance with the terms of the 
Good Samaritan permit, as determined by the 
Administrator; 
(B) if the Administrator terminates a per-
mit under paragraph (4)(B); or 
(C) except as provided in paragraph (2)— 
(i) on the date that is 18 months after 
the date on which the Administrator grant-
ed the Good Samaritan permit, if the per-
mitted work has not commenced by that 
date; or 
(ii) if the grant of the Good Samaritan 
permit was the subject of a petition for ju-
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dicial review, on the date that is 18 months 
after the date on which the judicial review, 
including any appeals, has concluded, if the 
permitted work has not commenced by that 
date. 
(2) EXTENSION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator is 
otherwise required to terminate a Good Samari-
tan permit under paragraph (1)(C), the Admin-
istrator may grant an extension of the Good Sa-
maritan permit. 
(B) LIMITATION.—Any extension granted 
under subparagraph (A) shall be not more than 
180 days for each extension. 
(3) EFFECT OF TERMINATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the ter-
mination of a Good Samaritan permit under 
paragraph (1), but subject to subparagraph (B), 
the provisions of paragraphs (1) through (3) of 
subsection (n) shall continue to apply to the 
Good Samaritan and any cooperating persons 
after the termination, including to any long-term 
operations and maintenance pursuant to the 
agreement under paragraph (5). 
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(B) DEGRADATION
OF
SURFACE
WATER 
QUALITY.— 
(i) OPPORTUNITY TO RETURN TO BASE-
LINE CONDITIONS.—If, at the time that 1 or 
more of the conditions described in para-
graph (1) are met but before the Good Sa-
maritan permit is terminated, actions by 
the Good Samaritan or cooperating person 
have caused surface water quality at the 
abandoned hardrock mine site to be measur-
ably worse, as determined by the Adminis-
trator, when compared to baseline condi-
tions described in the permit, the Adminis-
trator shall, before terminating the Good 
Samaritan permit, provide the Good Sa-
maritan or cooperating person, as applica-
ble, the opportunity to return surface water 
quality to those baseline conditions. 
(ii) EFFECT.—If, pursuant to clause 
(i), the applicable Good Samaritan or co-
operating person does not return the surface 
water quality at the abandoned hardrock 
mine site to the baseline conditions de-
scribed in the permit, as determined by the 
Administrator, subparagraph (A) shall not 
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apply to the Good Samaritan or any co-
operating persons. 
(4) UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The recipient of a Good 
Samaritan permit may seek to modify or termi-
nate the Good Samaritan permit to take into ac-
count any event or condition that— 
(i) significantly reduces the feasibility 
or significantly increases the cost of com-
pleting the remediation project that is the 
subject of the Good Samaritan permit; 
(ii) was not— 
(I) reasonably contemplated by 
the recipient of the Good Samaritan 
permit; or 
(II) taken into account in the re-
mediation plan of the recipient of the 
Good Samaritan permit; and 
(iii) is beyond the control of the recipi-
ent of the Good Samaritan permit, as deter-
mined by the Administrator. 
(B) 
TERMINATION.—The 
Administrator 
shall terminate a Good Samaritan permit if— 
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(i) the recipient of the Good Samari-
tan permit seeks termination of the permit 
under subparagraph (A); 
(ii) the factors described in subpara-
graph (A) are satisfied; and 
(iii) the Administrator determines that 
remediation activities conducted by the 
Good Samaritan or cooperating person pur-
suant to the Good Samaritan permit may 
result in surface water quality conditions, 
or any other environmental conditions, that 
will be worse than the baseline conditions, 
as described in the Good Samaritan permit, 
as applicable. 
(5) LONG-TERM
OPERATIONS
AND
MAINTE-
NANCE.—In the case of a project that involves long- 
term operations and maintenance at an abandoned 
hardrock mine site located on land owned by the 
United States, the project may be considered complete 
and the Administrator, in coordination with the ap-
plicable Federal land management agency, may ter-
minate the Good Samaritan permit under this sub-
section if the applicable Good Samaritan has entered 
into an agreement with the applicable Federal land 
management agency or a cooperating person for the 
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long-term operations and maintenance that includes 
sufficient funding for the long-term operations and 
maintenance. 
(s) REGULATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), the 
Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary of 
the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, and ap-
propriate State, Tribal, and local officials, may pro-
mulgate any regulations that the Administrator deter-
mines to be necessary to carry out this Act. 
(2) GUIDANCE
IF
NO
REGULATIONS
PROMUL-
GATED.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—If the Administrator 
does not initiate a regulatory process to promul-
gate regulations under paragraph (1) within 180 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator, in consultation with the Sec-
retary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agri-
culture, and appropriate State, Tribal, and local 
officials, shall issue guidance establishing specific 
requirements that the Administrator determines 
would facilitate the implementation of this sec-
tion. 
(B) PUBLIC COMMENTS.—Before finalizing 
any guidance issued under subparagraph (A), 
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the Administrator shall hold a 30-day public 
comment period. 
SEC. 5. SPECIAL ACCOUNTS. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 
Treasury of the United States a Good Samaritan Mine Re-
mediation Fund (referred to in this section as a ‘‘Fund’’) 
for— 
(1) each Federal land management agency that 
authorizes a Good Samaritan to conduct a project on 
Federal land under the jurisdiction of that Federal 
land management agency under a Good Samaritan 
permit; and 
(2) the Environmental Protection Agency. 
(b) DEPOSITS.—Each Fund shall consist of— 
(1) amounts provided in appropriation Acts; 
(2) any proceeds from reprocessing deposited 
under section 4(f)(4)(B)(iv); 
(3) any financial assurance funds collected from 
an 
agreement 
described 
in 
section 
4(m)(1)(A)(vi)(V)(bb); 
(4) any funds collected for long-term operations 
and maintenance under an agreement under section 
4(r)(5); and 
(5) any amounts donated to the Fund by any 
person. 
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(c) UNUSED FUNDS.—Amounts in each Fund not cur-
rently needed to carry out this Act shall be maintained as 
readily available or on deposit. 
(d) RETAIN
AND USE AUTHORITY.—The Adminis-
trator and each head of a Federal land management agency, 
as appropriate, may, notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, retain and use money deposited in the applicable 
Fund without fiscal year limitation for the purpose of car-
rying out this Act. 
SEC. 6. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 8 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in con-
sultation with the heads of Federal land management agen-
cies, shall submit to the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works of the Senate and the Committees on Trans-
portation and Infrastructure, Energy and Commerce, and 
Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a report 
evaluating the Good Samaritan pilot program under this 
Act. 
(b) INCLUSIONS.—The report under subsection (a) 
shall include— 
(1) a description of— 
(A) the number, types, and objectives of 
Good Samaritan permits granted pursuant to 
this Act; and 
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(B) each remediation project authorized by 
those Good Samaritan permits; 
(2) interim or final qualitative and quantitative 
data on the results achieved under the Good Samari-
tan permits before the date of issuance of the report; 
(3) a description of— 
(A) any problems encountered in admin-
istering this Act; and 
(B) whether the problems have been or can 
be remedied by administrative action (including 
amendments to existing law); 
(4) a description of progress made in achieving 
the purposes of this Act; and 
(5) recommendations on whether the Good Sa-
maritan pilot program under this Act should be con-
tinued, including a description of any modifications 
(including amendments to existing law) required to 
continue administering this Act. 
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Union Calendar No. 703 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7779 
[Report No. 118–823, Part I] 
A BILL 
To promote remediation of abandoned hardrock 
mines, and for other purposes. 
DECEMBER 11, 2024 
Committee on Natural Resources discharged; committed 
to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
the Union and ordered to be printed 
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