[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2877 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2877

  To require the Secretary of the Interior to determine the impact of 
leasing Federal lands for coal mining, on the existing mining industry 
  prior to issuing Federal coal mining leases, and for other purposes.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 5, 1993

Mr. Barlow (for himself and Mr. Rahall) introduced the following bill; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

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                                 A BILL


 
  To require the Secretary of the Interior to determine the impact of 
leasing Federal lands for coal mining, on the existing mining industry 
  prior to issuing Federal coal mining leases, 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 ``Federal Coal Equity Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. FEDERAL COAL LEASING CONSIDERATIONS.

    Section 2(a)(3) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 201(a)(3)) is 
amended by adding the following new subparagraph at the end thereof:
    ``(F)(i) Prior to the issuance of any coal lease under this Act, 
the Secretary shall consider the economic impact that mining under the 
proposed lease might have on competition in the coal industry and 
whether there is sufficient market demand for the additional coal to be 
mined under such proposed lease. Included in this consideration shall 
be a determination as to whether production of coal from the proposed 
lease would lead to the displacement of coal produced from existing 
mining operations that have reasonably and economically served existing 
markets. In the event the Secretary makes a determination that 
production of coal would lead to such displacement, the Secretary shall 
not issue the lease.''
    ``(ii) This subparagraph shall not apply to the issuance of a coal 
lease that would in the reasonably foreseeable future, prevent the 
bypass of Federal coal deposits, and that would provide for the 
expansion of existing mining operations.''.

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