HR 394 IH

To ensure that Federal taxpayers receive a fair return for the extraction of locatable minerals on public domain lands, and for other purposes.

January 19, 1999

Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California (for himself, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. LAFALCE, and Mr. LEWIS of Georgia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

To ensure that Federal taxpayers receive a fair return for the extraction of locatable minerals on public domain lands, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Hardrock Mining Royalty Act of 1999'.

SEC. 2. ROYALTY.

(a) RESERVATION OF ROYALTY- Each person producing locatable minerals (including associated minerals) from any mining claim located under the general mining laws, or mineral concentrates derived from locatable minerals produced from any mining claim located under the general mining laws, as the case may be, shall pay a royalty of 5 percent of the net smelter return from the production of such locatable minerals or concentrates, as the case may be.

(b) ROYALTY PAYMENTS- Each person responsible for making royalty payments under this section shall make such payments to the Secretary not later than 30 days after the end of the calendar month in which the mineral or mineral concentrates are produced and first placed in marketable condition, consistent with prevailing practices in the industry.

(c) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS- All persons holding mining claims located under the general mining laws shall provide to the Secretary such information as determined necessary by the Secretary to ensure compliance with this section, including, but not limited to, quarterly reports, records, documents, and other data. Such reports may also include, but not be limited to, pertinent technical and financial data relating to the quantity, quality, and amount of all minerals extracted from the mining claim.

(d) AUDITS- The Secretary is authorized to conduct such audits of all persons holding mining claims located under the general mining laws as he deems necessary for the purposes of ensuring compliance with the requirements of this section.

(e) DISPOSITION OF RECEIPTS- All receipts from royalties collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the Fund established under section 3.

(f) COMPLIANCE- Any person holding mining claims located under the general mining laws who knowingly or willfully prepares, maintains, or submits false, inaccurate, or misleading information required by this section, or fails or refuses to submit such information, shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 imposed by the Secretary.

(g) EFFECTIVE DATE- This section shall take effect with respect to minerals produced from a mining claim in calendar months beginning after the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. ABANDONED MINERALS MINE RECLAMATION FUND.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT- (1) There is established on the books of the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the Abandoned Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund (hereinafter referred to as the Fund). The Fund shall be administered by the Secretary.

(2) The Secretary shall notify the Secretary of the Treasury as to what portion of the Fund is not, in his judgment, required to meet current withdrawals. The Secretary of the Treasury shall invest such portion of the Fund in public debt securities with maturities suitable for the needs of such Fund and bearing interest at rates determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration current market yields on outstanding marketplace obligations of the United States of comparable maturities. The income on such investments shall be credited to, and from a part of, the Fund.

(b) AMOUNTS- The following amounts shall be credited to the Fund for the purposes of this Act:

(1) All moneys received from royalties under section 1 of this Act and the mining claim maintenance fee under section 4 of this Act.

(2) All donations by persons, corporations, associations, and foundations for the purposes of this title.

(c) USE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE FUND- The Secretary is, subject to appropriations, authorized to use moneys in the Fund for the reclamation and restoration of land and water resources adversely affected by past mineral (other than coal and fluid minerals) and mineral material mining, including but not limited to, any of the following:

(1) Reclamation and restoration of abandoned surface mined areas.

(2) Reclamation and restoration of abandoned milling and processing areas.

(3) Sealing, filling, and grading abandoned deep mine entries.

(4) Planting of land adversely affected by past mining to prevent erosion and sedimentation.

(5) Prevention, abatement, treatment and control of water pollution created by abandoned mine drainage.

(6) Control of surface subsidence due to abandoned deep mines.

(7) Such expenses as may be necessary to accomplish the purposes of this section.

(d) ELIGIBLE AREAS- (1) Land and waters eligible for reclamation expenditures under this section shall be those within the boundaries of States that have lands subject to the general mining laws--

(A) which were mined or processed for minerals and mineral materials or which were affected by such mining or processing, and abandoned or left in

an inadequate reclamation status prior to the date of enactment of this Act;

(B) for which the Secretary makes a determination that there is no continuing reclamation responsibility under State or Federal laws; and

(C) for which it can be established that such lands do not contain minerals which could economically be extracted through the reprocessing or remining of such lands.

(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), sites and areas designated for remedial action pursuant to the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978 (42 U.S.C. 7901 and following) or which have been listed for remedial action pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 and following) shall not be eligible for expenditures from the Fund under this section.

(e) FUND EXPENDITURES- Moneys available from the Fund may be expended directly by the Director, Bureau of Land Management. The Director may also make such money available through grants made to the Chief of the United States Forest Service, and the Director of the National Park Service.

(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS- Amounts credited to the Fund are authorized to be appropriated for the purpose of this title without fiscal year limitation.

SEC. 4. LIMITATION ON PATENT ISSUANCE.

No patent shall be issued by the United States for any mining or mill site claim located under the general mining laws unless the Secretary determines that, for the claim concerned a patent application was filed with the Secretary on or before September 30, 1994, and all requirements established under sections 2325 and 2326 of the Revised Statutes (30 U.S.C. 29 and 30) for vein or lode claims and sections 2329, 2330, 2331, and 2333 of the Revised Statutes (30 U.S.C. 35, 36 and 37) for placer claims, and section 2337 of the Revised Statutes (30 U.S.C. 42) for mill site claims, as the case may be, were fully complied with by the applicant by that date.

SEC. 5. MINING CLAIM MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS.

(a) IN GENERAL- (1) Effective October 1, 1998, the holder of each mining claim located under the general mining laws prior to the date of enactment shall pay to the Secretary an annual claim maintenance fee of $100 per claim per calendar year.

(2) The holder of each mining claim located under the general mining laws subsequent to the date of enactment shall pay to the Secretary an annual claim maintenance fee of $125 per claim per calendar year.

(b) PURCHASING POWER ADJUSTMENT- The Secretary shall adjust the amount of the claim maintenance fee payable pursuant to subsection (a) for changes in the purchasing power of the dollar after the calendar year 1993, employing the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers published by the Department of Labor as the basis for adjustment, and rounding according to the adjustment process of conditions of the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990.

(c) TIME OF PAYMENT- Each claim holder shall pay the claim maintenance fee payable under subsection (a) for any year on or before August 31 of each year, except that for the initial calendar year in which the location is made, the initial claim maintenance fee shall be paid at the time the location notice is recorded with the Bureau of Land Management.

(d) OIL SHALE CLAIMS SUBJECT TO CLAIM MAINTENANCE FEES UNDER ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 1992- The section shall not apply to any oil shale claims for which a fee is required to be paid under section 2511(e)(2) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (30 U.S.C. 242(e)(2)).

(e) CLAIM MAINTENANCE FEES PAYABLE UNDER 1993 ACT- The claim maintenance fees payable under this section for any period with respect to any claim shall be reduced by the amount of the claim maintenance fees paid under section 10101 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 with respect to that claim and with respect to the same period.

(f) WAIVER- (1) The claim maintenance fee required under this section may be waived for a claim holder who certifies in writing to the Secretary that on the date

the payment was due, the claim holder and all related parties held not more than 10 mining claims on land open to location. Such certification shall be made on or before the date on which payment is due.

(2) For purposes of this subsection, with respect to any claim holder, the term `related party' means each of the following:

(A) The spouse and dependent children (as defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986), of the claim holder.

(B) Any affiliate of the claim holder.

(g) CO-OWNERSHIP- Upon the failure of any one or more of several co-owners to contribute such co-owner or owners portion of the fee under this section, any co-owner who has paid such fee may, after the payment due date, give the delinquent co-owner or owners notice of such failure in writing (or by publication in the newspaper nearest the claim for at least once a week for at least 90 days). If at the expiration of 90 days after such notice in writing or by publication, any delinquent co-owner fails or refused to contribute his portion, his interest, in the claim shall become the property of the co-owners who have paid the required fee.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

As used in this Act:

(1) The term `affiliate' means, with respect to any person, each of the following:

(A) Any partner of such person.

(B) Any person owning at least 10 percent of the voting shares of such person.

(C) Any person who controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with such person.

(2) The term `locatable minerals' means minerals not subject to disposition under any of the following:

(A) The Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 and following);

(B) The Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 100 and following);

(C) The Act of July 31, 1947, commonly known as the Materials Act of 1947 (30 U.S.C. 601 and following); or

(D) the Mineral Leasing for Acquired Lands Act (30 U.S.C. 351 and following).

(3) The term `net smelter return' has the same meaning provided in section 613 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 613) for `gross income from mining'.

(4) The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of the Interior.

(5) The term `general mining laws' means those Acts which generally comprise chapters 2, 12A, and 16, and sections 161 and 162 of title 30, United States Code.

END