Mining Regulatory Clarity Act
Updated 2 hours ago
Last progress December 18, 2025 (1 month ago)
Creates rules for locating and using hardrock mining “mill sites” on public land and establishes an "Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund" in the U.S. Treasury to receive certain claim-fee payments. The bill defines key terms, limits the size and number of mill sites (for example, a single mill site may not exceed 5 acres), allows claimants to include necessary mill sites in approved plans of operations, preserves existing federal regulatory authority and claimant rights, and specifies how Fund amounts may be used and allocated to support work under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Defines “mill site” as public land reasonably necessary for waste rock or tailings disposal or other operations reasonably incident to mineral development on or production from land included in a plan of operations.
Defines “operations” and “operator” by reference to their meanings in 43 C.F.R. § 3809.5 (as in effect on date of enactment).
Defines “plan of operations” as the plan an operator must submit and the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture must approve (referencing subpart 3809 of 43 C.F.R. and part 228 of 36 C.F.R.).
Defines “public land” as U.S. land open to location under sections 2319–2344 of the Revised Statutes, including mineral-in-character land, nonmineral land, and land where mineral character is undetermined.
Where public land is needed for operations connected to a lode or placer claim within a proposed plan of operations, the proprietor may locate and include as many mill site claims as are reasonably necessary within the plan of operations.
Who is affected and how:
Claimants and miners: Individuals or companies holding lode/placer claims gain an explicit, limited ability to include necessary mill sites in approved plans of operations on public land. The size and use of those mill sites are constrained, which may make permitting and on-the-ground operations more predictable but still subject to federal review.
Mining operators and industry participants: The bill clarifies where small processing or support sites may be sited and how they count toward allowed disturbance. This can reduce uncertainty for operations tied to claims while adding statutory size limits.
Abandoned mine cleanup projects and recipients: The new Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund provides a dedicated funding stream drawn from specified claim-fee receipts to support cleanup activities authorized under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, increasing resources for remediation and related work.
Federal agencies (Treasury, DOI, EPA and land managers): Agencies will administer the Fund, implement the amended fee and allocation rules, and continue to perform environmental reviews, permitting, and enforcement. Administrative workload may increase due to new Fund management and modified fee flows.
Local communities and environment: Communities near legacy mine sites may benefit from more stable funding for cleanup and reduced hazards over time. Environmental protections remain in place through required reviews, but allowing mill sites on public land could raise local concerns about additional disturbance unless tightly managed.
Fiscal and legal effects:
Overall, the legislation is technical and narrowly focused on mill-site rules and a remediation fund; it balances greater clarity for claimants with preserved federal oversight and creates a targeted funding mechanism for abandoned mine cleanup.
Last progress February 12, 2025 (11 months ago)
Introduced on February 12, 2025 by Catherine Marie Cortez Masto
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
2 meetings related to this legislation