[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 107 (Tuesday, July 17, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    NATIONAL STRATEGIC AND CRITICAL MINERALS PRODUCTION ACT OF 2012

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                               speech of

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 12, 2012

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4402) to 
     require the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 
     Agriculture to more efficiently develop domestic sources of 
     the minerals and mineral materials of strategic and critical 
     importance to United States economic and national security 
     and manufacturing competitiveness:

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Madam Chair, today's legislation has more to do with 
undermining environmental review of mining on public lands than the 
production of rare earths and other critical minerals, and I will 
oppose it today.
  Specifically, H.R. 4402 would let mining companies operating on 
public lands set time limits for each part of the environmental review 
process and then arbitrarily cap total environmental review time at 30 
months. The bill then elevates mining over hunting, fishing, grazing, 
conservation and any other public purpose and places new restrictions 
on judicial review. Finally, the definition of ``strategic and critical 
minerals'' in this legislation is so broad as to encompass virtually 
every mineral that is or could be mined on public lands--including such 
common materials as sand, clay and gravel. If the majority was 
seriously interested in targeting the production of strategic and 
critical minerals on public lands, we would have adopted the amendment 
offered by our colleague Rep. Paul Tonko expressly for that purpose. 
Instead, the Tonko amendment was defeated on a party line vote and so 
we are left with the serious defects of the underlying legislation.
  Madam Chair, we can responsibly develop our natural resources and 
protect our environment at the same time. H.R. 4402 ignores that 
central truth and should be opposed by every member of this body.

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