[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 139 (Wednesday, August 4, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S5869]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2540. Ms. ROSEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 2137 proposed by Mr. Schumer (for Ms. Sinema (for herself, 
Mr. Portman, Mr. Manchin, Mr. Cassidy, Mrs. Shaheen, Ms. Collins, Mr. 
Tester, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Warner, and Mr. Romney)) to the bill H.R. 
3684, to authorize funds for Federal-aid highways, highway safety 
programs, and transit programs, and for other purposes; which was 
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

        On page 1614, line 19, insert ``hardrock mining,'' before 
     ``or coal mining''.
       On page 1616, strike lines 1 through 9 and insert the 
     following:
       (d) Consultation.--The Secretary shall consult with the 
     Director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and 
     Enforcement and the Administrator of the Environmental 
     Protection Agency, acting through the Office of Brownfields 
     and Land Revitalization--
       (1) to determine whether it is necessary to promulgate 
     regulations or issue guidance in order to prioritize and 
     expedite the siting of clean energy projects on current and 
     former mine land sites; and
       (2) to convene utilities, nonprofit organizations, 
     researchers, and other stakeholders--
       (A) to explore the most effective avenues available to 
     address transmission and distribution system upgrades needed 
     to develop the sites described in paragraph (1); and
       (B) to identify and evaluate current barriers to clean 
     energy development, including mine closure plans and 
     reclamation requirements, and recommend revisions to such 
     requirements that can facilitate clean energy deployment on 
     mine sites while protecting the environment.
       On page 1617, between lines 6 and 7, insert the following:

     SEC. 40344. RE-POWERING AMERICA'S LAND INITIATIVE.

       (a) In General.--The Administrator of the Environmental 
     Protection Agency (referred to in this section as the 
     ``Administrator'') shall establish the RE-Powering America's 
     Land Initiative as a program within the Environmental 
     Protection Agency in order to encourage the development of 
     clean energy projects on current and former mine land and 
     brownfield sites.
       (b) Requirements.--In carrying out the program under 
     subsection (a), the Administrator shall--
       (1) inform eligible entities applying for a multipurpose 
     brownfield grant of the option to develop a clean energy 
     project on a brownfield site;
       (2) provide technical and programmatic assistance to 
     eligible entities, including data mapping, solar siting, and 
     feasibility studies;
       (3) integrate parcel-level, spatially explicit data into 
     the existing Re-Powering inventory of mine land and 
     brownfield sites to facilitate and streamline identification 
     and evaluation of suitable sites; and
       (4) engage with States and local entities to promote 
     awareness of the program.
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