Legislation & Regulation
Legislative and Regulatory Update
July 2014 by Scott Harn
At press time, the mandatory settlement hearings are still pending in San Bernardino, California.
All parties in the suction gold dredge court battle were ordered by Judge Gilbert Ochoa to appear or participate by phone on June 24, with additional dates of June 25 and 26 set aside if needed.
As mentioned last month, this is a good sign. If Judge Ochoa was prepared to rule against the miners, he would have already done so. But case law is in favor of the miners—states are allowed to reasonably regulate mining but cannot prohibit it. The moratorium that began in 2009 is, in effect, a prohibition, and the new regulations promulgated by the California Department of Fish & Wildlife would make it impossible to operate a suction dredge profitably even if the moratorium is lifted.
We will continue to post updates to our website
• Fighting back
You’ll notice some positive articles in this issue about miners fighting back. A few legislators seem to be taking note of the overbearing nature of federal agencies and are lending a hand.
We are certainly happy to see this trend developing and pray it continues.
There is a lesson here. Federal agencies will continue to abuse their authority and restrict our rights if we allow it. Summarize the issues involved in your case and ask for a meeting with your state or federal representative.
Be polite and respectful, but don’t allow government officers or agents to ignore the law.
You are guaranteed to lose your rights if you allow the abuse to continue!
As this issue is mailed, we’re heading off to Idaho for the Occupy Idaho Waters dredging protest. Miners will gather on the Salmon River near Riggins, Idaho, to protest EPA interference with the dredging permit process.
From June 30 through July 6, miners will gather to dredge with the support of county commissioner Jim Chmelik and the local sheriff.
We’ll report on this event in the August issue.
Obama Administration Moves to Block Mining Near Yellowstone
Republicans and industry representatives have criticized the administration’s eleventh-hour actions to limit development and promised to seek their reversal once Obama leaves office.
Legislative and Regulatory Update
Suction dredging court cases in California linger on
Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Pacific Legal Foundation joins effort to overturn California dredging moratorium
• PLP fund drive continues
EPA Reopens Comments on Pebble Project
The settlement did not grant an immediate approval for the project, but it did begin to clear the way for the company to apply for federal permits—a path the Obama administration previously had thwarted.
AMRA Takes On USFS in Idaho
Mr. Hughes was obviously shaken by our interaction and we are quite confident he assumed we were all missing teeth, long-haired, uneducated, backwoods miners who would immediately become submissive. That didn’t happen...
Prospectors Protest San Gabriel Mountains National Monument
More than 100 gold prospectors gathered at Azusa Canyon in the recently declared San Gabriel Mountains National Monument in southern California to voice their concerns…
Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Idaho miners will challenge new EPA permit at rally
• California proposes to amend definition of a suction dredge
• Proposed rule redefines "navigable waters"
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The Bawl Mill
• A Return to Silver City, Idaho
• Ask the Experts
• Ask the Experts
• Ask the Experts
• Swing and a Miss
• Miners Fight Back Against Road Closures
• The Giant King Mine
• BLM Flexes Its Muscles in Quartzsite
• Over the Divide
• Romancing the Lens
• Gold Recovery with Centrifugal Bowls
• Mining on the Comstock Lode
• Want to Go to Australia?
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
Free:
Representative Manweller Lends a Hand in Washington State
