retary of Agriculture to share information con-
cerning the royalty management of hardrock min-
erals, concentrates, or products derived therefrom to 
carry out inspection, auditing, investigation, or en-
forcement (not including the collection of royalties, 
civil or criminal penalties, or other payments) activi-
ties under this section, and to carry out any other 
activity described in this section. 
(2) SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE.—Except as 
provided in paragraph (3), and pursuant to a coop-
erative agreement entered into under paragraph (1), 
the Secretary of Agriculture shall, upon request, 
have access to all royalty accounting information in 
the possession of the Secretary with respect to the 
production, removal, or sale of hardrock minerals, 
concentrates, or products derived therefrom from 
claims or leases on land open to mineral exploration 
and production under this Act. 
(3) CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Trade secrets, propri-
etary information, and other confidential infor-
mation protected from disclosure under section 
552 of title 5, United States Code, shall be 
made available by the Secretary to other Fed-
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eral agencies as necessary to ensure compliance 
with this Act and other Federal laws. 
(B) PROTECTION OF INFORMATION.—The 
Secretary, the Secretary of Agriculture, and 
other Federal officials shall ensure that the in-
formation described in subparagraph (A) is pro-
vided protection in accordance with the require-
ments of that section. 
(h) INTEREST AND SUBSTANTIAL UNDERREPORTING 
ASSESSMENTS.— 
(1) PAYMENTS NOT RECEIVED.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of mining 
claims or leases where royalty payments are not 
received by the Secretary on the date that such 
payments are due, the Secretary shall charge 
interest on such underpayments at the same in-
terest rate as the rate applicable under section 
6621(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986. 
(B) COMPUTATION.—In the case of an un-
derpayment, interest shall be computed and 
charged only on the amount of the deficiency 
and not on the total amount. 
(2) UNDERREPORTING.—If there is any under-
reporting of royalty owed on production from a 
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claim or lease for any production month by any per-
son liable for royalty payments under this section, 
the Secretary shall assess a penalty of not more 
than 25 percent of the amount of the under-
reporting. 
(3) SELF-REPORTING.—The Secretary may 
waive or reduce the assessment under paragraph (2) 
if the person liable for royalty payments under this 
section corrects the underreporting before the later 
of— 
(A) the date such person receives notice 
from the Secretary that an underreporting may 
have occurred; and 
(B) the date that is 90 days after the ef-
fective date of this Act. 
(4) WAIVER.—The Secretary shall waive any 
portion of an assessment under paragraph (2) at-
tributable to that portion of the underreporting for 
which the person responsible for paying the royalty 
demonstrates that such person— 
(A) had written authorization from the 
Secretary to report royalty on the value of the 
production on the basis on which it was re-
ported; 
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(B) had substantial authority for reporting 
royalty on the value of the production on the 
basis on which it was reported; 
(C) previously had notified the Secretary, 
in such manner as the Secretary may by regula-
tion issue, of relevant reasons or facts affecting 
the royalty treatment of specific production 
which led to the underreporting; or 
(D) meets any other exception which the 
Secretary may, by regulation, establish. 
(5) ABANDONED
HARDROCK
MINE
RECLAMA-
TION PROGRAM.—All penalties collected under this 
subsection shall be shall be made available to carry 
out, to remain available until expended without fiscal 
year limitation, the Abandoned Hardrock Mine Rec-
lamation Program. 
(6) UNDERREPORTING DEFINED.—In this sub-
section, the term ‘‘underreporting’’ means the dif-
ference between the royalty on the value of the pro-
duction that should have been reported and the roy-
alty on the value of the production which was re-
ported, if the value that should have been reported 
is greater than the value that was reported. 
(i) EXPANDED ROYALTY OBLIGATIONS.—Each per-
son liable for royalty payments under this section shall 
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be jointly and severally liable for royalty on all hardrock 
minerals, concentrates, or products derived therefrom that 
are lost or wasted from a mining claim or lease if such 
loss or waste is due to negligence on the part of any person 
or due to the failure to comply with this section. 
(j) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ROYALTY REQUIRE-
MENTS.—Any person who fails to comply with the require-
ments of this section shall be liable for a civil penalty 
under section 109 of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty 
Management Act of 1982 (30 U.S.C. 1719) to the same 
extent as if the claim or lease maintained in compliance 
with this Act were a lease under such Act. 
(k) GROSS INCOME FROM MINING DEFINED.—In 
this section, for any hardrock mineral, the term ‘‘gross 
income from mining’’ has the meaning given the term 
‘‘gross income’’ in section 613(c) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986. 
(l) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Royalties under this Act shall 
take effect with respect to the production of hardrock min-
erals after the effective date of this Act, but any royalty 
payments attributable to production during the first 12 
calendar months after the effective date of this Act shall 
be payable at the expiration of such 12-month period. 
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SEC. 108. EXISTING PRODUCTION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The claim holder of a mining 
claim located or converted under this Act for which min-
eral activities have commenced under an approved plan of 
operations as of the effective date of this Act shall have 
the exclusive right of possession and use of the land sub-
ject to such mining claim for mineral activities, including 
the right of ingress and egress to such land for mineral 
activities, subject to the rights of the United States under 
this Act and other applicable Federal law. 
(b) TERMINATION.—The rights of the claim holder 
under subsection (a) shall terminate upon completion of 
mineral activities on such land to the satisfaction of the 
Secretary. 
SEC. 109. HARDROCK MINING CLAIM MAINTENANCE FEE. 
(a) FEE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.— 
(A) REQUIRED FEES.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 
in section 2511(e)(2) of the Energy Policy 
Act of 1992 (30 U.S.C. 242(e)(2)) and as 
otherwise provided in this Act, for each 
unpatented mining claim, millsite, or tun-
nel site on Federal land, whether located 
before or on the effective date of this Act, 
each such claimant shall pay to the Sec-
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retary, on or before September 1 of each 
year, a claim maintenance fee of $200 per 
claim to hold such unpatented mining 
claim, millsite, or tunnel site for the as-
sessment year beginning at noon the fol-
lowing day. 
(ii) FEE IN PLACE OF ASSESSMENT 
WORK.—A claim maintenance fee paid 
under clause (i) shall be in lieu of the as-
sessment work requirement in the Mining 
Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 28 et seq.) and 
the related filing requirements in sections 
314(a) and (c) of the Federal Land Policy 
and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 
1744(a) and (c)). 
(B) FEE ADJUSTMENTS.—Any adjustment 
to a fee under this subsection made under sec-
tion 502 shall begin to apply in the first assess-
ment year which begins after the adjustment is 
made. 
(C) EXCEPTION
FOR
SMALL
MINERS.— 
Subparagraph (A) and the assessment work re-
quirement in the Mining Law of 1872 (30 
U.S.C. 28 et seq.) shall not apply with respect 
to a small miner’s lease. 
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(2) RECLAMATION PROGRAM.—Moneys received 
under this subsection that are not otherwise allo-
cated for the administration of this Act by the Sec-
retary shall be made available to carry out, to re-
main available until expended without fiscal year 
limitation, the Abandoned Hardrock Mine Reclama-
tion Program. 
(b) CO-OWNERSHIP.—The co-ownership provisions of 
the Mining Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 28 et seq.) shall re-
main in effect except that the annual claim maintenance 
fee under subsection (a), where applicable, shall replace 
applicable assessment requirements and expenditures 
under that Act. 
(c) FAILURE TO PAY.—Failure to pay the claim 
maintenance fee under subsection (a) in a timely manner 
shall conclusively constitute a forfeiture of the unpatented 
mining claim, millsite, or tunnel site by the claimant and 
the claim, millsite, or tunnel site shall be deemed null and 
void by operation of law. 
(d) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1) REQUIRED FILINGS.—Nothing in this sec-
tion shall change or modify the requirements of sec-
tion 314(b) of the Federal Land Policy and Manage-
ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1744(b)) or the re-
quirements of section 314(c) of that Act (43 U.S.C. 
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1744(c)) related to filings required by section 314(b) 
of that Act (43 U.S.C. 1744(b)), which remain in ef-
fect. 
(2) MINING LAW OF 1872.—Section 2324 of the 
Mining Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 28) is amended by 
inserting ‘‘or section 103(a) of the Mining Waste, 
Fraud, and Abuse Prevention Act of 2025’’ after 
‘‘Act of 1993’’. 
SEC. 110. EFFECT OF PAYMENTS FOR USE AND OCCUPANCY 
OF CLAIMS. 
Except as otherwise provided in section 101, timely 
payment of the claim maintenance fee required by section 
109 or any related law relating to the use of Federal land, 
asserts the authority of the claimant to use and occupy 
the Federal land concerned for prospecting and explo-
ration, consistent with the requirements of this Act and 
other applicable law. 
SEC. 111. PROTECTION OF SPECIAL PLACES. 
(a) PROTECTION OF NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS 
AND NATIONAL MONUMENTS.—No agency may authorize 
any mineral activity that would impair the land or re-
sources of a unit of the National Park System or a na-
tional monument, including— 
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(1) any diminution of the affected land, includ-
ing wildlife, scenic assets, water resources, air qual-
ity, and acoustic qualities; or 
(2) other changes that would impair a the expe-
rience of a citizen at the National Park System unit 
or a national monument. 
(b) PROTECTION OF NATIONAL CONSERVATION SYS-
TEM UNITS.—In order to protect the resources and values 
of National Conservation System units, the Secretary, as 
appropriate, shall use authority under this Act and other 
applicable law to the fullest extent necessary to prevent 
mineral activities that could have an adverse impact on 
the resources or values for which such units were estab-
lished. 
(c) LANDS NOT OPEN TO MINING.—Notwithstanding 
any other provision of law and subject to valid existing 
rights, no agency shall authorize mineral activities within 
any of the following areas: 
(1) Sacred sites. 
(2) Wilderness study areas. 
(3) Habitat designated as critical habitat under 
section 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 
U.S.C. 1533). 
(4) Areas of critical environmental concern (as 
such term is defined in section 103 of the Federal 
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cured for the area subject to mineral activities at-
tributable to the completed activities may be re-
leased, except that sufficient financial assurance 
must be retained to address other required reclama-
tion needs and to ensure the long-term success of 
the revegetation. 
(2) After the operator has successfully com-
pleted all remaining mineral activities and reclama-
tion activities and all requirements of the operations 
plan and the reclamation plan, and all other require-
ments of this Act have been fully met, the remaining 
portion of the financial assurance may be released. 
During the period following release of the financial assur-
ance as specified in paragraph (1), until the remaining 
portion of the financial assurance is released as provided 
in paragraph (2), the operator shall be required to comply 
with the relevant permit issued under this title. 
(g) EFFLUENT.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 
307(b)(2)(D), where any discharge or other water- 
related condition resulting from mineral activities re-
quires treatment in order to meet applicable effluent 
limitations and water quality standards, the finan-
cial assurance shall include the estimated cost of 
maintaining such treatment for the projected period 
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