1.Short title; table of
contents
(a)This Act may be cited
as the Rare Earths Supply Chain
Technology and Resources Transformation Act of 2011
or
the RESTART Act
.
(b)The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Actions to promote rare earth development.
Sec. 4. Requirement to establish executive agents for rare
earth related matters.
Sec. 5. Rare earth materials loan guarantee
program.
Sec. 6. Establishment of a rare earth alloy and magnet
program.
Sec. 7. Rare earth materials program.
Sec. 8. Amendments to National Materials and Minerals Policy,
Research and Development Act of 1980.
Sec. 9. Definitions.
2.Congress makes the following
findings:
(1)Significant
quantities of rare earths are used in the production of clean energy
technologies, including advanced automotive propulsion batteries, electric
motors, high-efficiency light bulbs, solar panels, and wind turbines. These
technologies are used to advance the United States energy policy of reducing
dependence on foreign oil and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions through
expansion of cleaner sources of energy.
(2)Many modern defense technologies such as
radar and sonar systems, precision-guided weapons, cruise missiles, and lasers
cannot be built, as designed and specified, without the use of rare earths and
materials produced from them.
(3)Rare earths also
provide core functionality to a variety of high technology applications in
computing, pollution abatement, power generation, water treatment, oil
refining, metal alloying, communications, health care, agriculture, and other
sectors.
(4)Though at least 40
percent of the world’s rare earth reserves are located within the United States
and its ally nations, our country now depends upon imports for nearly 100
percent of its rare earth needs.
(5)Furthermore, the
United States has limited rare earth production, remains nearly entirely
dependent on overseas refineries for further elemental and alloy processing,
and does not currently maintain a strategic reserve
of rare
earth compounds, metals, or alloys.
(6)By way of
contrast, more than 97 percent of all rare earths for world consumption is
produced in China. The ability—and willingness—of China to export these rare
earths is eroding due to its growing domestic demand, its enforcement of
environmental law on current producers, and its mandate to consolidate the
industry by decreasing its number of mining permits. In fact, China has taken
several steps recently that have caused significant market
perturbations.
(7)For example, the
Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology draft rare earths plan
for 2009 to 2015 proposed an immediate ban on the export of dysprosium,
terbium, thulium, lutetium, and yttrium, the so-called heavy
rare earths, and a restriction on the exports of all other, light, rare earth
metals to a level well below that sufficient to satisfy the 2008 demand of
Japan alone for such metals.
(8)More recently, in
July 2010, China decreased their export quota allocations on rare earth oxides
and metals by over 70 percent, causing price increases of threefold to
eightfold and causing supply shortages of some materials.
(9)In September 2010,
the Chinese Government reportedly restricted export of all rare earth oxide and
metal to Japan over a diplomatic incident.
(10)Most recently, in
October 2010, the Chinese Government reportedly restricted export of all rare
earth oxide and metal to the United States and Europe, essentially cutting off
the global community from supplies of rare earth material.
(11)Given that
Chinese dominance of the rare earths market has adversely impacted the supply
stability and endangers the United States and its allies’ assured access to key
materials, rare earths should qualify as materials either strategic or critical
to national security. As such, there is an urgent need to identify the current
global market situation regarding rare earth materials, the strategic value
placed on them by foreign nations including China, and the Department of
Defense’s and domestic manufacturing industry’s supply-chain vulnerability
related to rare earths and end items containing rare earths such as neodymium
iron boron and other specialty magnets, and rare earth doped
lasers.
(12)The United States
Government should facilitate the reintroduction of a globally competitive
non-Chinese rare earth industry with multiple sources of mining, processing,
alloying, and manufacturing.
(13)This
self-sufficiency requires an uninterrupted supply of strategic materials
critical to national security and innovative commercial product development,
including rare earths, to support the clean energy and defense supply
chains.
(14)The United States
currently cannot reclaim valuable rare earths and permanent magnets and such
capability should be explored using appropriate research and development
projects.
3.Actions to
promote rare earth development
(a)It is the sense of
Congress that the United States should take any and all actions necessary to
ensure the reintroduction of a competitive domestic and ally nation rare earth
supply chain, to include the reintroduction of the capacity to conduct mining,
refining/processing, alloying and manufacturing operations using domestic and
ally nation suppliers to provide a secure source of rare earth materials as a
vital component of national security and economic policy.
(b)Each
Federal agency shall take appropriate actions, to the extent consistent with
applicable law, to expedite permitting and projects that will increase
exploration for, and development of, domestic rare earths.
(c)Rare Earth
Policy Task Force
(1)There
is established within the Department of the Interior a task force to be known
as the Rare Earth Policy Task Force
(referred to in this section
as the Task Force
), which shall report to the President through
the Secretary of the Interior.
(2)The
Task Force shall be composed of the following:
(A)The Secretary of
the Interior (or a designee of such Secretary), who shall serve as chair of the
Task Force.
(B)The Secretary of
Energy (or a designee of such Secretary).
(C)The Secretary of
Agriculture (or a designee of such Secretary).
(D)The Secretary of
Defense (or a designee of such Secretary).
(E)The Secretary of
Commerce (or a designee of such Secretary).
(F)The Secretary of
State (or a designee of such Secretary).
(G)The Director of
the Office of Management and Budget (or a designee of the Director).
(H)The Chairman of
the Council on Environmental Quality (or a designee of the Chairman).
(I)Such other members
as the Secretary of the Interior considers appropriate.
(d)The
Task Force shall—
(1)monitor and assist
Federal agencies in expediting the review and approval of permits or other
actions, as necessary, to accelerate the completion of projects that will
increase investment in, exploration for, and development of domestic rare
earths pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the Act of June 4, 1897 (commonly known as the
Organic Act of 1897
(16 U.S.C. 473–482, 551), the National
Forest Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.), and any other
applicable statutory authorities related to domestic mining operations;
(2)assist Federal
agencies in reviewing laws (including regulations) and policies that discourage
investment in, exploration for, and development of domestic rare earths
pursuant to Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, the Act of June 4,
1897, the National Forest Management Act of 1976, and any other applicable
statutory authorities related to domestic mining operations; and
(3)take such other
actions to otherwise increase investment in, exploration for, and development
of domestic rare earths as the Task Force considers appropriate.
(e)At least once each year, the Task Force shall submit to
the President, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate, the
Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, and the
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a report setting
forth the following:
(1)A
description of the results of the coordinated and expedited review of permits
or other actions to promote investment in, exploration for, and development of
domestic rare earths, and an identification of the procedures and actions that
have proven to be the most useful and appropriate in coordinating and
expediting the review of projects that will increase investment in, exploration
for, and development of domestic rare earths.
(2)An identification
of the substantive and procedural requirements of Federal, State, tribal, and
local laws (including regulations) and Executive orders that are inconsistent
with, duplicative of, or structured so as to restrict effective implementation
of the projects described in paragraph (1).
(3)Such
recommendations as the Task Force considers appropriate to advance the policy
set forth in subsection (b).
(f)The
Task Force shall terminate 10 years after the date of the enactment of this
Act.
(g)
(1)Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any
judicial review of an agency action under any other provision of law.
(2)This
section—
(A)is intended to
improve the internal management of the Federal Government; and
(B)does not create
any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or equity
by a party against the United States (including an agency, instrumentality,
officer, or employee of the United States) or any other person.
4.Requirement to
establish executive agents for rare earth related mattersNo later than 30 days after the enactment of
this Act the Secretaries of Commerce, Defense, Energy, the Interior, and State
shall each appoint an Executive Agent, at the Assistant Secretary level of each
affected agency, to serve as a representative on an interagency working group
for the purposes of reestablishing a competitive domestic rare earth supply
chain.
5.Rare earth
materials loan guarantee program
(a)Title
XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16511 et seq.) is amended by
adding at the end the following new section:
1706.Temporary
program for rare earth materials revitalization
(a)The Secretary is authorized, only to the extent provided
in advance in a subsequent appropriations act, to make guarantees under this
title for the commercial application of new or significantly improved
technologies (compared to technologies currently in use in the United States at
the time the guarantee is issued) for the following categories of
projects:
(1)The separation and
recovery of rare earth materials from ores or other sources.
(2)The preparation of
rare earth materials in oxide, metal, alloy, or other forms needed for national
security, economic well-being, or industrial production purposes.
(3)The application of
rare earth materials in the production of improved—
(A)magnets;
(B)batteries;
(C)refrigeration
systems;
(D)optical
systems;
(E)electronics;
and
(F)catalysis.
(4)The application of
rare earth materials in other uses, as determined by the Secretary.
(b)The
Secretary shall seek to minimize delay in approving loan guarantee
applications, consistent with appropriate protection of taxpayer
interests.
(c)To
the maximum extent practicable, the Secretary shall cooperate with appropriate
private sector participants to achieve a complete rare earth materials
production capability in the United States or ally nations within 5 years after
the date of enactment of the Rare Earths
Supply Chain Technology and Resources Transformation Act of
2011.
(d)The
Secretary is authorized to make a guarantee for a project under this section
only if the project, due to technical or financial uncertainly, is not—
(1)currently being
undertaken by the private sector; or
(2)likely to be
undertaken by the private sector.
(e)The
authority to enter into guarantees under this section shall expire on September
30,
2015.
.
(b)Table of
contents amendmentThe table of contents of the Energy Policy Act
of 2005 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1705 the
following new item:
Sec. 1706. Temporary program for rare
earth materials
revitalization.
.
6.Establishment of
a rare earth alloy and magnet program
(a)Congress
finds the following:
(1)While the
capability to produce rare earth materials, including neodymium iron boron
magnets (in this subsection referred to as neo magnets
), is the
backbone of the defense supply chain, the United States lacks sufficient
capability to produce such materials.
(2)Sintered neo
magnets are irreplaceable components of critical military equipment, ranging
from precision guided munitions to stealth technology to electric drive ship
programs, and they allow systems within aircraft, tanks and other vehicles,
missile systems, and command and control centers to withstand vibration,
impact, and G-forces.
(3)Yet despite the
essential nature of these magnets to United States national security, the
United States is completely reliant on unreliable foreign sources that are
subject to interruption and disruption, based on actions or events outside the
control of the Federal Government.
(4)In addition,
industry officials have noted that it will take 3 to 5 years to develop a
domestic neo magnet manufacturing capability for the commercial market.
(5)In light of these
facts, there is a clear national security imperative to lay the groundwork
immediately for developing a supply chain in the United States that allows for
ready access to neodymium iron boron magnet alloys, dysprosium iron alloys, and
sintered neodymium iron boron magnets.
(b)Requirement To
establish an inventory
(1)In accordance with section 15 of the
Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98h–6), using
funds from the sale of excess materials in the National Defense Stockpile, the
President, acting through the Secretary of Defense, shall establish a neodymium
iron boron magnet alloy and dysprosium iron alloy inventory to be managed by
the Administrator of the Defense Logistics Agency Strategic Materials.
(2)In carrying out
paragraph (1), not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of Defense shall—
(A)commence creating
an inventory of domestic or ally nation neodymium iron boron magnet alloys and
dysprosium iron alloys; and
(B)make such
inventory accessible, including by purchase, to producers of domestic neodymium
iron boron magnets, the Defense Logistics Agency of the Department of Defense,
or other entities requiring such material to support national defense
requirements.
(3)
(A)Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall determine the amount
of neodymium iron boron magnet alloys and dysprosium iron alloys required for
the inventory established under paragraph (1).
(B)In making the determination regarding
neodymium iron boron magnet alloys and dysprosium iron alloys under
subparagraph (A), the Secretary of Defense shall determine—
(i)the aggregate
demand for such magnets for national defense purposes; and
(ii)domestic and ally
nation sources considered by the Secretary to be reliable, including an
analysis of the viability of such sources for the near-term production of
military-specific sintered neodymium iron boron magnet alloys and
magnets.
(C)If the Secretary of Defense cannot
determine the aggregate demand for neodymium iron boron magnet alloys and
dysprosium iron alloys under subparagraph (B)(i), the Secretary shall establish
an inventory of not less than 200 metric tons of neodymium iron boron magnet
alloy and 50 metric tons of dysprosium iron alloy.
(c)Requirement To
encourage a domestic manufacturing capability
(1)In accordance with section 15 of the
Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98h–6), not later
than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President,
acting through the Secretary of Defense, shall encourage the development of a
domestic neodymium iron boron magnet manufacturing capability by seeking to
enter into long-term supply contracts for the delivery of necessary grades of
domestic neodymium iron boron magnets to meet the demand of the Department of
Defense.
(2)In carrying out paragraph (1), the
Secretary of Defense shall—
(A)identify one or more reliable producers,
potential producers, or past producers of sintered neodymium iron boron magnets
and seek to enter into a long-term supply contract with such producer of such
magnets to support the national defense needs of the United States;
(B)ensure that a
sintered neodymium iron boron magnet producer who is awarded any such long-term
contract establishes manufacturing capability for only military-use magnets for
sale to the National Defense Stockpile;
(C)include all
appropriate language in any such contract to indemnify the producers regarding
intellectual property issues; and
(D)require the Administrator of the Defense
Logistics Agency Strategic Materials to make available such magnets for
purchase by Federal Government contractors until the date on which the
Secretary determines that an alternate qualified domestic supplier of sintered
neodymium iron boron magnets exists.
(d)The
authority under subsection (b) and the authority to enter into a long-term
supply contract under subsection (c) shall terminate on the earlier of the
following dates:
(1)The date on which
the Secretary of Defense determines that an alternate qualified domestic
supplier of neodymium iron boron magnet alloy and dysprosium iron alloy
exists.
(2)October 1,
2018.
7.Rare earth
materials program
(a)There is established in the United States Geological
Survey a program of research, development, demonstration, and commercial
application to ensure the long-term, secure, and sustainable supply of rare
earth materials sufficient to satisfy the national security, economic
well-being, and industrial production needs of the United States.
(b)The program described in subsection (a) shall support
activities to—
(1)better
characterize and quantify virgin stocks of rare earth materials using
theoretical geochemical research;
(2)explore, discover,
and recover rare earth materials using advanced science and technology;
(3)improve methods
for the extraction, processing, use, recovery, and recycling of rare earth
materials;
(4)improve the
understanding of the performance, processing, and adaptability in engineering
designs of rare earth materials;
(5)identify and test
alternative materials that can be substituted for rare earth materials in
particular applications;
(6)engineer and test
applications that—
(A)use recycled rare
earth materials;
(B)use alternative
materials; or
(C)seek to minimize
rare earth materials content;
(7)collect,
catalogue, archive, and disseminate information on rare earth materials,
including scientific and technical data generated by the research and
development activities supported under this section, and assist scientists and
engineers in making the fullest possible use of the data holdings; and
(8)facilitate
information sharing and collaboration among program participants and
stakeholders.
(c)Improved
processes and technologiesTo the maximum extent practicable, the
Secretary of the Interior shall support new or significantly improved processes
and technologies as compared to those currently in use in the rare earth
materials industry.
(d)The Secretary of the Interior shall
encourage—
(1)multidisciplinary
collaborations among program participants; and
(2)extensive
opportunities for students at institutions of higher education, including
institutions listed under section 371(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)).
(e)The
program shall be consistent with the policies and programs in the National
Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act of 1980 (30 U.S.C.
1601 et seq.).
(f)International
collaborationIn carrying out the program, the Secretary of the
Interior may collaborate, to the extent practicable, on activities of mutual
interest with the relevant agencies of foreign countries with interests
relating to rare earth materials.
(g)
(1)Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act
and biennially thereafter, the Secretary of the Interior shall prepare and
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a plan to carry out the
program established under subsection (a).
(2)The plan shall include a description of—
(A)the research and
development activities to be carried out by the program during the subsequent 2
years;
(B)the expected
contributions of the program to the creation of innovative methods and
technologies for the efficient and sustainable provision of rare earth
materials to the domestic economy;
(C)how the program is
promoting the broadest possible participation by academic, industrial, and
other contributors; and
(D)actions taken or
proposed that reflect recommendations from the assessment conducted under
subsection (h) or the Secretary’s rationale for not taking action pursuant to
any recommendation from such assessment for plans submitted following the
completion of the assessment under such subsection.
(3)In
preparing each plan under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Interior shall
consult with appropriate representatives of industry, institutions of higher
education, Department of Energy national laboratories, professional and
technical societies, and other entities, as determined by the Secretary.
8.Amendments to
National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act of
1980
(a)Section 5 of the National Materials and Minerals Policy,
Research and Development Act of 1980 (30 U.S.C. 1604) is amended—
(1)by striking
date of enactment of this Act
each place it appears and
inserting date of enactment of the Rare Earths Supply Chain Technology and Resources
Transformation Act of 2011
;
(2)in subsection (b),
by striking Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and
Technology
and inserting National Science and Technology
Council,
;
(3)in subsection
(c)—
(A)by striking
the Federal Emergency
and all that follows through
Agency, and
;
(B)by striking
appropriate shall
and inserting appropriate,
shall
;
(C)by striking
paragraph (1);
(D)in paragraph (2),
by striking in the case
and all that follows through
subsection,
;
(E)by redesignating
paragraph (2) as paragraph (1); and
(F)by striking
paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
(2)assess the
adequacy, accessibility, and stability of the supply of materials necessary to
maintain national security, economic well-being, and industrial
production.
;
(4)by striking
subsections (d) and (e); and
(5)by redesignating
subsection (f) as subsection (d).
(b)Section
3 of such Act (30 U.S.C. 1602) is amended—
(1)by striking
The Congress declares that it
and inserting It
;
and
(2)by striking
The Congress further declares that implementation
and inserting
Implementation
.
(c)Section
4 of such Act (30 U.S.C. 1603) is amended—
(1)by striking
For the purpose
and all that follows through declares
that the
and inserting The
; and
(2)by striking
departments and agencies,
and inserting departments and
agencies to implement the policies set forth in section 3
.
9.In this Act:
(1)The
terms alloy means a partial or complete solid solution of one or
more elements in a metallic matrix.
(2)The
term alloying means the melting of metal to create a metallic
matrix.
(3)Appropriate
congressional committeesThe term appropriate congressional
committees means the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives and the Committee Energy and Natural Resources of the
Senate.
(4)The
term process, in the case of a rare earth oxide, means the
conversion of the oxide into usable rare earth metals and specialty alloys and
powders for domestic magnet and other manufacturing.
(5)The term rare earth means any of the following
chemical elements in any of their physical forms or chemical
combinations:
(A)Scandium.
(B)Yttrium.
(C)Lanthanum.
(D)Cerium.
(E)Praseodymium.
(F)Neodymium.
(G)Promethium.
(H)Samarium.
(I)Europium.
(J)Gadolinium.
(K)Terbium.
(L)Dysprosium.
(M)Holmium.
(N)Erbium.
(O)Thulium.
(P)Ytterbium.
(Q)Lutetium.