RECLAIM Act of 2019

IB Union Calendar No. 176 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2156 [Report No. 116–223] To amend the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to provide funds to States and Indian tribes for the purpose of promoting economic revitalization, diversification, and development in economically distressed communities through the reclamation and restoration of land and water resources adversely affected by coal mining carried out before August 3, 1977, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 9, 2019 Mr. CARTWRIGHT (for himself, Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky, Mr. BEYER, and Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources OCTOBER 4, 2019 Additional sponsors: Mr. RYAN, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. PETERS, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. FLEISCHMANN, Mrs. BUSTOS, Mr. TONKO, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. SIRES, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. BEN RAY LUJA´N of New Mexico, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. MEUSER, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. MI- CHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. SEWELL of Alabama, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. LAMB, Ms. WILD, Mr. SOTO, Mr. GUTHRIE, Mr. STIVERS, Mr. MCKINLEY, Ms. DEAN, Mr. DAVID P. ROE of Tennessee, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, Mr. GRIFFITH, Mr. JOHNSON of Ohio, Mr. ROUDA, Ms. SCANLON, Mr. HIMES, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Ms. HOULAHAN, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mr. FOSTER, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. WELCH, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. KILMER, Mrs. AXNE, Mr. EVANS, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. DESJARLAIS, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. HECK, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. CASE, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. BURCHETT, Ms. DELBENE, Ms. SLOTKIN, Mr. RICHMOND, and Mr. CROW VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 2156 RH OCTOBER 4, 2019 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 9, 2019] A BILL To amend the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to provide funds to States and Indian tribes for the purpose of promoting economic revitalization, di- versification, and development in economically distressed communities through the reclamation and restoration of land and water resources adversely affected by coal min- ing carried out before August 3, 1977, and for other purposes. VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 2156 RH 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 ‘‘Revitalizing the Econ- 4 omy of Coal Communities by Leveraging Local Activities 5 and Investing More Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘RECLAIM Act 6 of 2019’’. 7 SEC. 2. ECONOMIC REVITALIZATION FOR COAL COUNTRY. 8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title IV of the Surface Mining 9 Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1231 et 10 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 11 ‘‘SEC. 416. ABANDONED MINE LAND ECONOMIC REVITALIZA- 12 TION. 13 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to pro- 14 mote economic revitalization, diversification, and develop- 15 ment in economically distressed mining communities 16 through the reclamation and restoration of land and water 17 resources adversely affected by coal mining carried out be- 18 fore August 3, 1977. 19 ‘‘(b) IN GENERAL.—From amounts deposited into the 20 fund under section 401(b) before October 1, 2007, and not 21 otherwise appropriated to the extent such funds are avail- 22 able, $200,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary, 23 without further appropriation, for each of fiscal years 2020 24 through 2024 for distribution to States and Indian tribes 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 2156 RH in accordance with this section for reclamation and restora- 1 tion projects at sites identified as priorities under section 2 403(a): Provided, That if less than $200,000,000 is avail- 3 able in any fiscal year to the Secretary, such remaining 4 amount shall be made available to the Secretary, without 5 further appropriation, and such fiscal year shall end dis- 6 tributions made available under this section. 7 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds distributed to a State 8 or Indian tribe under subsection (d) shall be used only for 9 projects classified under the priorities of section 403(a) that 10 meet the following criteria: 11 ‘‘(1) CONTRIBUTION TO FUTURE ECONOMIC OR 12 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.— 13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The project, upon com- 14 pletion of reclamation, is intended to create fa- 15 vorable conditions for the economic development 16 of the project site or create favorable conditions 17 that promote the general welfare through eco- 18 nomic and community development of the area 19 in which the project is conducted. 20 ‘‘(B) DEMONSTRATION OF CONDITIONS.— 21 Such conditions are demonstrated by— 22 ‘‘(i) documentation of the role of the 23 project in such area’s economic development 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 2156 RH strategy or other economic and community 1 development planning process; 2 ‘‘(ii) any other documentation of the 3 planned economic and community use of the 4 project site after the primary reclamation 5 activities are completed, which may include 6 contracts, agreements in principle, or other 7 evidence that, once reclaimed, the site is 8 reasonably anticipated to be used for one or 9 more industrial, commercial, residential, 10 agricultural, or recreational purposes; or 11 ‘‘(iii) any other documentation agreed 12 to by the State or Indian tribe that dem- 13 onstrates the project will meet the criteria 14 set forth in this subsection. 15 ‘‘(2) LOCATION IN ECONOMICALLY DISTRESSED 16 COMMUNITY AFFECTED BY RECENT DECLINE IN MIN- 17 ING.— 18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The project will be con- 19 ducted in a community— 20 ‘‘(i) that has been adversely affected 21 economically by a recent reduction in coal 22 mining related activity, as demonstrated by 23 employment data, per capita income, or 24 other indicators of economic distress; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 2156 RH ‘‘(ii)(I) that has historically relied on 1 coal mining for a substantial portion of its 2 economy; and 3 ‘‘(II) in which the economic contribu- 4 tion of coal mining has significantly de- 5 clined. 6 ‘‘(B) SUBMISSION AND PUBLICATION OF 7 EVIDENCE OR ANALYSIS.—Any evidence or anal- 8 ysis relied upon in selecting the location of a 9 project under this subparagraph shall be sub- 10 mitted to the Secretary for publication. The Sec- 11 retary shall publish such evidence or analysis in 12 the Federal Register within 30 days after receiv- 13 ing such submission. 14 ‘‘(3) STAKEHOLDER COLLABORATION.— 15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The project has been 16 the subject of project planning under subsection 17 (g) and has been the focus of collaboration, in- 18 cluding partnerships, as appropriate, with inter- 19 ested persons or local organizations. 20 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC NOTICE.—As part of project 21 planning— 22 ‘‘(i) the public has been notified of the 23 project and has been given an opportunity 24 to comment at a public meeting convened in 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 2156 RH a community near the proposed project site; 1 and 2 ‘‘(ii) the State or Indian tribe pub- 3 lished notice of such meetings in local news- 4 papers of general circulation, on the Inter- 5 net, and by any other means considered de- 6 sirable by the Secretary. 7 ‘‘(C) ELECTRONIC NOTIFICATION.—The 8 State or Indian tribe established a way for inter- 9 ested persons to receive electronically all public 10 notices issued under subparagraph (B) and any 11 written declarations submitted to the Secretary 12 under paragraph (5). 13 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—The project has 14 been proposed by entities of State, local, county, or 15 tribal governments, or local organizations, and will be 16 approved and executed by State or tribal programs, 17 approved under section 405 or referred to in section 18 402(g)(8)(B), which may include subcontracting 19 project-related activities, as appropriate. 20 ‘‘(5) WAIVER.—If the State or Indian tribe— 21 ‘‘(A) cannot provide documentation de- 22 scribed in paragraph (1)(B) for a project con- 23 ducted under a priority stated in paragraph (1) 24 or (2) of section 403(a), or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 2156 RH ‘‘(B) is unable to meet the requirements 1 under paragraph (2), 2 the State or Indian tribe shall submit a written dec- 3 laration to the Secretary requesting an exemption 4 from the requirements of those subparagraphs. The 5 declaration must explain why achieving favorable 6 conditions for economic or community development at 7 the project site is not practicable, or why the require- 8 ments of paragraph (2) cannot be met, and that suffi- 9 cient funds distributed annually under section 401 10 are not available to implement the project. Such re- 11 quest for an exemption is deemed to be approved, ex- 12 cept the Secretary shall deny such request if the Sec- 13 retary determines the declaration to be substantially 14 inadequate. Any denial of such request shall be re- 15 solved at the State’s or Indian tribe’s request through 16 the procedures described in subsection (e). 17 ‘‘(d) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 18 ‘‘(1) UNCERTIFIED STATES.— 19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—From the amount made 20 available in subsection (b), the Secretary shall 21 distribute $195,000,000 annually for each of fis- 22 cal years 2020 through 2024 to States and In- 23 dian tribes that have a State or tribal program 24 approved under section 405 or are referred to in 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 2156 RH section 402(g)(8)(B), and have not made a cer- 1 tification under section 411(a) in which the Sec- 2 retary has concurred, as follows: 3 ‘‘(i) Four-fifths of such amount shall be 4 distributed based on the proportion of the 5 amount of coal historically produced in 6 each State or from the lands of each Indian 7 tribe concerned before August 3, 1977. 8 ‘‘(ii) One-fifth of such amount shall be 9 distributed based on the proportion of rec- 10 lamation fees paid during the period of fis- 11 cal years 2012 through 2016 for lands in 12 each State or lands of each Indian tribe 13 concerned. 14 ‘‘(B) SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDS.—Funds dis- 15 tributed under this section— 16 ‘‘(i) shall be in addition to, and shall 17 not affect, the amount of funds distrib- 18 uted— 19 ‘‘(I) to States and Indian tribes 20 under section 401(f); and 21 ‘‘(II) to States and Indian tribes 22 that have made a certification under 23 section 411(a) in which the Secretary 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 2156 RH has concurred, subject to the cap de- 1 scribed in section 402(i)(3); and 2 ‘‘(ii) shall not reduce any funds dis- 3 tributed to a State or Indian tribe by rea- 4 son of the application of section 402(g)(8). 5 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO CERTAIN STATES 6 AND INDIAN TRIBES.— 7 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBILITY.—From the amount made 8 available in subsection (b), the Secretary shall 9 distribute $5,000,000 annually for each of the 10 five fiscal years beginning with fiscal year 2020 11 to States and Indian tribes that have a State 12 program approved under section 405 and have 13 made a certification under section 411(a) in 14 which the Secretary has concurred. 15 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION FOR FUNDS.—Using the 16 process in section 405(f), any State or Indian 17 tribe described in subparagraph (A) may submit 18 a grant application to the Secretary for funds 19 under this paragraph. The Secretary shall review 20 each grant application to confirm that the 21 projects identified in the application for funding 22 are eligible under subsection (c). 23 ‘‘(C) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—The 24 amount of funds distributed to each State or In- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 2156 RH dian tribe under this paragraph shall be deter- 1 mined by the Secretary based on the dem- 2 onstrated need for the funding to accomplish the 3 purpose of this section. 4 ‘‘(3) REALLOCATION OF UNCOMMITTED FUNDS.— 5 ‘‘(A) COMMITTED DEFINED.—For purposes 6 of this paragraph the term ‘committed’— 7 ‘‘(i) means that funds received by the 8 State or Indian tribe— 9 ‘‘(I) have been exclusively applied 10 to or reserved for a specific project and 11 therefore are not available for any 12 other purpose; or 13 ‘‘(II) have been expended or des- 14 ignated by the State or Indian tribe 15 for the completion of a project; 16 ‘‘(ii) includes use of any amount for 17 project planning under subsection (g); and 18 ‘‘(iii) reflects an acknowledgment by 19 Congress that, based on the documentation 20 required under subsection (c)(2)(B), any 21 unanticipated delays to commit such funds 22 that are outside the control of the State or 23 Indian tribe concerned shall not affect its 24 allocations under this section. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:07 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2156.RH H2156 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 2156 RH ‘‘(B) FISCAL YEARS 2023 AND 2024.—For 1 each of fiscal years 2023 and 2024, the Secretary 2 shall reallocate in accordance with subparagraph 3 (D) any amount available for distribution under 4 this subsection that has not been committed to el- 5 igible projects in the preceding 2 fiscal years, 6 among the States and Indian tribes that have 7 committed to eligible projects the full amount of 8 their annual allocation for the preceding fiscal 9 year. 10 ‘‘(C) FISCAL YEAR 2025.—For fiscal year 11 2025, the Secretary shall reallocate [Text truncated for display. 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