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 ‘‘National Strategic and 
Critical Minerals Production Act of 2012’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The industrialization of China and India 
has driven demand for nonfuel mineral commodities, 
sparking a period of resource nationalism exempli-
fied by China’s reduction in exports of rare-earth 
elements necessary for telecommunications, military 
technologies, healthcare technologies, and conven-
tional and renewable energy technologies. 
(2) The availability of minerals and mineral 
materials are essential for economic growth, national 
security, technological innovation, and the manufac-
turing and agricultural supply chain. 
(3) The exploration, production, processing, 
use, and recycling of minerals contribute signifi-
cantly to the economic well-being, security and gen-
eral welfare of the Nation. 
(4) The United States has vast mineral re-
sources, but is becoming increasingly dependent
upon foreign sources of these mineral materials, as 
demonstrated by the following: 
(A) Twenty-five years ago the United 
States was dependent on foreign sources for 30 
nonfuel mineral materials, 6 of which the 
United States imported 100 percent of the Na-
tion’s requirements, and for another 16 com-
modities the United States imported more than 
60 percent of the Nation’s needs. 
(B) By 2011 the United States import de-
pendence for nonfuel mineral materials had 
more than doubled from 30 to 67 commodities, 
19 of which the United States imported 100 
percent of the Nation’s requirements, and for 
another 24 commodities, imported more than 
50 percent of the Nation’s needs. 
(C) The United States share of world wide 
mineral exploration dollars was 8 percent in 
2011, down from 19 percent in the early 1990s. 
(D) In the 2012 Ranking of Countries for 
Mining Investment, out of 25 major mining 
countries, the United States ranked last with 
Papua New Guinea in permitting delays, and 
towards the bottom regarding government take 
and social issues affecting mining.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) STRATEGIC AND CRITICAL MINERALS.—The 
term ‘‘strategic and critical minerals’’ means min-
erals that are necessary— 
(A) for national defense and national secu-
rity requirements; 
(B) for the Nation’s energy infrastructure, 
including pipelines, refining capacity, electrical 
power generation and transmission, and renew-
able energy production; 
(C) to support domestic manufacturing, 
agriculture, 
housing, 
telecommunications, 
healthcare, and transportation infrastructure; 
and 
(D) for the Nation’s economic security and 
balance of trade. 
(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means any 
agency, department, or other unit of Federal, State, 
local, or tribal government, or Alaska Native Cor-
poration. 
(3) MINERAL
EXPLORATION
OR
MINE
PER-
MIT.—The term ‘‘mineral exploration or mine per-
mit’’ includes plans of operation issued by the Bu-
reau of Land Management and the Forest Service
pursuant to 43 CFR 3809 and 36 CFR 228A re-
spectively. 
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 crit-
ical minerals shall be considered an ‘‘infrastructure 
project’’ as described in Presidential Order ‘‘Improving 
Performance of Federal Permitting and Review of Infra-
structure Projects’’ dated March 22, 2012. 
SEC. 102. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE LEAD AGENCY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The lead agency with responsi-
bility for issuing a mineral exploration or mine permit 
shall appoint a project lead who shall coordinate and con-
sult with other agencies, cooperating agencies, project pro-
ponents and contractors to ensure that agencies minimize 
delays, set and adhere to timelines and schedules for com-
pletion 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 
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 combina-
tion of the two processes together provide an adequate 
mechanism 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 
process including the following: 
(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.