[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 120 (Thursday, July 13, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S2577]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 397. Mr. LANKFORD submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
by him to the bill S. 2226, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2024 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. ENSURING RELIABLE SUPPLY OF RARE EARTH MINERALS.

       (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The People's Republic of China is the global leader in 
     mining, refining, and component manufacturing of critical 
     minerals, possessing 60 percent of mine production, 85 
     percent of processing capacity, and 90 percent of permanent 
     magnet production as of 2022.
       (2) In 2022, the United States was more than 50 percent 
     reliant on imports of 12 minerals classified as ``critical'' 
     by the United States Geological Survey, 30 of which sourced 
     from the People's Republic of China.
       (3) On March 26, 2014, the World Trade Organization ruled 
     that the People's Republic of China's export restraints on 
     critical minerals violated its obligations under its protocol 
     of accession to the World Trade Organization, thereby harming 
     United States manufacturers and workers.
       (4) The Chinese Communist Party has threatened to leverage 
     the People's Republic of China's dominant position in the 
     critical minerals market to ``strike back'' at the United 
     States.
       (5) The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue is an effective 
     partnership for reliable multilateral financing, development, 
     and distribution of goods for global consumption, as 
     evidenced by the Quad Vaccine Partnership announced on March 
     12, 2021.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) the People's Republic of China's dominant share of the 
     global rare earth mining market is a threat to the economic 
     stability, well being, and competitiveness of key industries 
     in the United States;
       (2) the United States should reduce reliance on the 
     People's Republic of China for rare earth minerals through--
       (A) strategic investments in development projects, 
     production technologies, and refining facilities in the 
     United States; or
       (B) in partnership with strategic allies of the United 
     States that are reliable trading partners, including members 
     of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue; and
       (3) the United States Trade Representative should initiate 
     multilateral talks among the countries of the Quadrilateral 
     Security Dialogue to promote shared investment and 
     development of rare earth minerals.
       (c) Report Required.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the United States Trade 
     Representative, in consultation with the officials specified 
     in paragraph (3), shall submit to the appropriate 
     congressional committees a report on the work of the Trade 
     Representative to address the national security threat posed 
     by the People's Republic of China's control of nearly \2/3\ 
     of the global supply of rare earth minerals.
       (2) Elements.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
     include--
       (A) a description of the extent of the engagement of the 
     United States with the other countries of the Quadrilateral 
     Security Dialogue to promote shared investment and 
     development of rare earth minerals during the period 
     beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act and ending 
     on the date of the report; and
       (B) a description of the plans of the President to leverage 
     the partnership of the countries of the Quadrilateral 
     Security Dialogue to produce a more reliable and secure 
     global supply chain of rare earth minerals.
       (3) Officials specified.--The official specified in this 
     paragraph are the following:
       (A) The Secretary of State.
       (B) the Secretary of Commerce.
       (C) The Chief Executive Officer of the United States 
     International Development Finance Corporation.
       (4) Appropriate congressional committees defined.--In this 
     subsection, the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
     means--
       (A) the Committee on Finance, the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations, and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 
     of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Ways and Means, the Committee on 
     Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of 
     the House of Representatives.
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