American Critical Mineral Independence Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2637 To promote the domestic exploration, research, development, and processing of critical minerals to ensure the economic and national security of the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 16, 2021 Mr. WALTZ (for himself, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. WESTERMAN, Mr. LUCAS, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. STAUBER, Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. BAIRD, Mr. TIFFANY, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mr. GOHMERT, and Mr. RESCHENTHALER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Science, Space, and Technology, Small Business, the Judiciary, and Edu- cation and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To promote the domestic exploration, research, development, and processing of critical minerals to ensure the eco- nomic and national security of the United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘American Critical Min- 4 eral Independence Act of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2637 IH SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 1 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 2 (1) The assured supply of critical minerals and 3 the resiliency of critical mineral supply chains are 4 essential to the economic prosperity and national de- 5 fense of the United States. 6 (2) The United States is heavily dependent on 7 foreign sources of critical minerals and on foreign 8 supply chains resulting in the potential for strategic 9 vulnerabilities to both the economy and the military. 10 (3) As deployment of clean energy technologies 11 and emissions control devices increase, the demand 12 for critical minerals will grow significantly. 13 (4) The United States is import-reliant for 30 14 of the 35 minerals designated as critical by the De- 15 partment of the Interior and relies completely on im- 16 ports to meet demand for 13 of these minerals. 17 (5) Over the past two decades China has pro- 18 duced more than 80 percent of the world’s rare- 19 earth elements and processed chemicals and has had 20 similar supply control over other critical minerals. 21 (6) China’s projected total metals demand 22 growth rate suggests that within a decade China’s 23 total annual metals demand will increase from to- 24 day’s 55% to more than 75% of the total world pro- 25 duction of all metals. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2637 IH (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 1 gress that to break from China’s control on the mineral 2 supply chain, the United States should support significant 3 research and development activities to drive innovation in 4 domestic critical minerals production, promote responsible 5 development of critical minerals, and encourage inter- 6 national collaboration to limit the impact of mineral sup- 7 ply disruptions. 8 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 9 In this Act: 10 (1) BYPRODUCT.—The term ‘‘byproduct’’ has 11 the meaning given such term in section 7002 of Di- 12 vision Z of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 13 2021 (Public Law 116–260). 14 (2) CRITICAL MINERAL.—The term ‘‘critical 15 mineral’’ has the meaning given such term in section 16 7002 of Division Z of the Consolidated Appropria- 17 tions Act, 2021 (Public Law 116–260) except that 18 such term shall not exclude materials described in 19 subsection (a)(3)(B)(iii) of such section. 20 (3) CRITICAL MINERAL PROJECT.—The term 21 ‘‘critical mineral project’’ means a project— 22 (A) located on— 23 (i) a mining claim, millsite claim, or 24 tunnel site claim for any locatable mineral; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2637 IH (ii) lands open to mineral entry; or 1 (iii) a Federal mineral lease; and 2 (B) for the purpose of producing a critical 3 mineral, including— 4 (i) as a byproduct, or a product of a 5 host mineral, or from tailings; or 6 (ii) through an exploration project 7 with respect to which the presence of a by- 8 product is a reasonable expectation, based 9 on known mineral companionality, geologic 10 formation, mineralogy, or other factors. 11 (4) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 12 has the meaning given such term in section 4 of the 13 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 14 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 15 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 16 the Secretary of the Interior. 17 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 18 (A) a State; 19 (B) the District of Columbia; 20 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 21 (D) Guam; 22 (E) American Samoa; 23 (F) the Commonwealth of the Northern 24 Mariana Islands; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2637 IH (G) the United States Virgin Islands. 1 (7) LEAD AGENCY.—The term ‘‘lead agency’’ 2 means the agency with primary responsibility for 3 issuing a mineral exploration or mine permit for a 4 project. 5 (8) MINERAL EXPLORATION OR MINE PER- 6 MIT.—The term ‘‘mineral exploration or mine per- 7 mit’’ means— 8 (A) an authorization of the Bureau of 9 Land Management or the Forest Service, as ap- 10 plicable, for a premining activity that requires 11 analysis under the National Environmental Pol- 12 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 13 (B) a plan of operations issued by the Bu- 14 reau of Land Management or the Forest Serv- 15 ice; and 16 (C) a permit for a project located in an 17 area for which a hardrock mineral permit or 18 lease is available. 19 TITLE I—CRITICAL MINERALS 20 RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 21 SEC. 101. CRITICAL MINERALS INTERAGENCY SUB- 22 COMMITTEE. 23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Critical Minerals Sub- 24 committee of the National Science and Technology Council 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2637 IH (referred to in this section as ‘‘Subcommittee’’) shall co- 1 ordinate Federal science and technology efforts to ensure 2 secure and reliable supplies of critical minerals to the 3 United States. 4 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Subcommittee 5 shall be— 6 (1) to advise and assist the Committee on 7 Homeland and National Security and the National 8 Science and Technology Council on United States 9 policies, procedures, and plans as it relates to crit- 10 ical minerals, including— 11 (A) Federal research, development, and de- 12 ployment efforts to optimize methods for ex- 13 tractions, concentration, separation, and purifi- 14 cation of conventional, secondary, and uncon- 15 ventional sources of critical minerals; 16 (B) efficient use and reuse of critical min- 17 erals; 18 (C) the critical minerals workforce of the 19 United States; and 20 (D) United States private industry invest- 21 ments in innovation and technology transfer 22 from federally funded science and technology; 23 (2) to identify emerging opportunities, stimu- 24 late international cooperation, and foster the devel- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2637 IH opment of secure and reliable supply chains of crit- 1 ical minerals; 2 (3) to ensure the transparency of information 3 and data related to critical minerals; and 4 (4) to provide recommendations on coordination 5 and collaboration among the research, development, 6 and deployment programs and activities of Federal 7 agencies to promote a secure and reliable supply of 8 critical minerals necessary to maintain national se- 9 curity, economic well-being, and industrial produc- 10 tion. 11 (c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—In carrying out paragraphs 12 (1) and (2), the Subcommittee shall, taking into account 13 the findings and recommendations of relevant advisory 14 committees— 15 (1) provide recommendations on how Federal 16 agencies may improve the topographic, geologic, and 17 geophysical mapping of the United States and im- 18 prove the discoverability, accessibility, and usability 19 of the resulting and existing data, to the extent per- 20 mitted by law and subject to appropriate limitation 21 for purposes of privacy and security; assess the 22 progress towards developing critical minerals recy- 23 cling and reprocessing technologies, and techno- 24 logical alternatives to critical minerals; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2637 IH (2) examine options and provide recommenda- 1 tions for accessing and developing critical minerals 2 through investment and trade with allies and part- 3 ners of the United States; 4 (3) evaluate and provide recommendations to 5 incentivize the development and use of advances in 6 science and technology in the private industry; 7 (4) assess the need for, and make recommenda- 8 tions to address, the challenges facing the critical 9 minerals supply chain workforce of the United 10 States, including aging and retiring personnel and 11 faculty; public perceptions about the nature of min- 12 ing and mineral processing; and foreign competition 13 for United States talent; and 14 (5) develop, and update as necessary, a stra- 15 tegic plan to guide Federal programs and activities 16 to enhance scientific and technical capabilities across 17 critical mineral supply chains, including a roadmap 18 that identifies key research and development needs 19 and coordinates ongoing activities for source diver- 20 sification, more efficient use, recycling, and substi- 21 tution for critical minerals; as well as cross-cutting 22 mining science, data science techniques, manufac- 23 turing science and engineering, computational mod- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2637 IH eling, and environmental health and safety research 1 and development. 2 SEC. 102. CRITICAL MINERALS MINING RESEARCH AND DE- 3 VELOPMENT AT THE NATIONAL SCIENCE 4 FOUNDATION. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National 6 Science Foundation shall award grants, on a competitive 7 basis, to institutions of higher education or nonprofit orga- 8 nizations (or consortium of such institutions or organiza- 9 tions) to support basic research that will accelerate inno- 10 vation to advance critical minerals mining strategies and 11 technologies for the purpose of making better use of do- 12 mestic resources and eliminating national reliance on min- 13 erals and mineral materials that are subject to supply dis- 14 ruptions. 15 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—Activities funded by a grant 16 under this section may include— 17 (1) advancing mining research and development 18 activities to develop new mapping and mining tech- 19 nologies and techniques, including advanced critical 20 mineral extraction and production, to improve exist- 21 ing or to develop new supply chains of critical min- 22 erals and to yield more efficient, economical, and en- 23 vironmentally benign mining practices; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2637 IH (2) advancing critical mineral processing re- 1 search activities to improve separation, alloying, 2 manufacturing or recycling techniques and tech- 3 nologies that can decrease the energy intensity, 4 waste, potential environmental impact and costs of 5 those activities; 6 (3) conducting long-term earth observatory of 7 reclaimed mine sites, including the study of the evo- 8 lution of microbial diversity at such sites; 9 (4) examining the application of artificial intel- 10 ligence for geological exploration of critical minerals, 11 including what size and diversity of data sets would 12 be required; 13 (5) examining the application of machine learn- 14 ing for detection and sorting of critical minerals, 15 and determining the size and diversity of data sets 16 required for this analysis; 17 (6) conducting detailed isotope studies of crit- 18 ical minerals and the development of more refined 19 geologic models; and 20 (7) providing training and researcher opportu- 21 nities to undergraduate and graduate students to 22 prepare the next generation of mining engineers and 23 researchers. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2637 IH SEC. 103. RARE EARTH ELEMENTS AND CRITICAL MIN- 1 ERALS PROCESSING TECHNOLOGIES. 2 (a) RESEARCH PROGRAM FOR THE RECOVERY OF 3 CRITICAL MINERALS FROM VARIOUS FORMS OF MINE 4 WASTE AND METALLURGICAL ACTIVITIES.— 5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy, in 6 consultation with the Secretary, acting through the 7 Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforce- 8 ment Applied Science Program, shall carry out a 9 grant program— 10 (A) to research, develop, and assess ad- 11 vanced processing technologies and techniques 12 for the extraction, recovery, and reduction of 13 critical minerals, including rare earth elements, 14 from various forms of mine waste and metallur- 15 gical activities, including mine waste piles, 16 abandoned mine land sites, acid mine drainage 17 sludge, byproducts produced through legacy 18 mining and metallurgy activities, or oil shale; 19 and 20 (B) to determine if there are, and mitigate 21 if present, any potential environmental impacts 22 that could arise from the recovery of critical 23 minerals from these resources. 24 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— To 25 carry out the program under paragraph (1) there is 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Jun 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2637.IH H2637 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2637 IH authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the 1 Energy $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 2 through 2026, and to the Secretary of the Interior 3 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 4 2026. 5 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 6 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy, in [Text truncated for display. 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