Legislation & Regulation
Legislative and Regulatory Update
March 2019 by Scott Harn
• Massive 660-page lands bill passed in the Senate
Senate Bill 47 (S47), the Natural Resources Management Act, introduced by Senator Murkowski (R-Alaska), was chock full of land conveyances, mineral withdrawals, park boundary adjustments, and gifts to various Senators to get their support. Our biggest concern is that it included permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which is the primary vehicle used by the federal government to place more public lands off-limits to mining.
Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced an amendment in an attempt to limit authorization of the LWCF to a period of four years.
In support of the LWCF limits, Senator Lee stated, “...the program has regrettably drifted far from its original intent and has become rife with abuse.
“Indeed, the Land and Water Conservation Fund—or LWCF, as it is often described—has instead been used as a primary tool for more Federal land acquisition rather than to actually help people access or to help the government care for the land we already manage.”
Senator Lee also noted the federal government currently administers 640 million acres and there is an $18.5 billion maintenance backlog on federal lands.
Senator Lee’s amendment was defeated by a vote of 68 to 30.
S47 received a full, recorded vote on February 12, and it passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 92-8. The eight Senators who voted against the bill were Cruz (R-TX), Inhofe (R-OK), Johnson (R-WI), Lankford (R-OK), Lee (R-UT), Paul (R-KY), Sasse (R-NE), and Toomey (R-PA).
The bill now awaits consideration in the House.
California Destroys Another Prospecting Business
His small business managed to pump millions of dollars over the years into the California economy.
Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Critical minerals a priority
• Montana miners win again
• MSHA backs down
• Environmental groups as foreign agents
The Disappearance of State Mining Departments
Unfortunately, mining is politically unpopular and support of the mining industry, no matter how many jobs it brings to a state, even in times of difficult financial need, is never popular among politicians of any stripe.
Selecting A Low-Risk Region To Explore, Mine or Invest
“The evidence is clear—mineral deposits alone are not enough to attract precious commodity investment dollars...”
US Rare Earths: We Have & We Have Not
America’s premier source of strategic REEs were regulated out of business and 300 employees lost their jobs. For almost fifteen years America has been dependent on the communist Chinese cartel.
Mining Districts in Montana Get Organized
Those miners present immediately recognized the benefits of becoming members of MMAC and joined up on the spot. I spent some time answering a few questions, and then the miners took over.
Northwestern Alaska Mineral Resources
Gold and jade are actually only minor mineral resources for the Northwestern Alaska region as a whole. Modern prospecting has focused more on base metal than precious metal resources.
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