[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 778 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 778

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


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 13, 1997

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    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 
1997''.

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.
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