S. 2254: Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2015

114th Congress · introduced 2015-11-05 · Public Lands and Natural Resources · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S7817-7818)

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2015-11-05 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Udall, Tom [D-NM] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S7817-7818) Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2015

Plain summary

Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2015 This bill prohibits the United States from issuing a patent for any mining claim, millsite, or tunnel site located unless a patent application meeting all applicable requirements was filed with the Department of the Interior by September 30, 1994. The holder of each unpatented mining claim, millsite, or tunnel site shall pay Interior a maintenance fee of $150 for each claim, millsite, or tunnel site, as well as a location fee of $50. Any claimholder failing to perform assessment work or fee a maintenance fee shall forfeit the claim, millsite, or tunnel site. Production of all locatable minerals from any mining claim shall be subject to a reasonable royalty established by Interior of between 2% and 5% of the gross income from mining for production of all locatable minerals, which may be reduced in certain circumstances. Interior shall establish a comprehensive inspection, collection, fiscal, and production accounting and auditing system The bill prescribes requirements for exploration permits and mining permits. Any mining operator shall provide Interior with specified financial assurances to ensure the completion of reclamation and the restoration of any land or water adversely affected by the mineral activities. The operator shall restore land and water subject to mineral activities carried out under a permit to a condition capable of supporting: the uses that the land and water was capable of supporting before surface disturbance by the operator; or other beneficial uses that conform to applicable land use plans. The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 is amended to require Interior, for land under the Bureau of Land Management, and the Department of Agriculture, for National Forest System land, to review specified public lands, especially federal land in which mineral activities pose a reasonable likelihood of substantial adverse impacts on National Conservation System units, to inform decisions on withdrawal of land from mining operations. The bill establishes the Hardrock Minerals Reclamation Fund, administered by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, for the reclamation and restoration of land and water resources adversely affected by past hardrock minerals and mining and related activities in abandoned hardrock mine states and on Indian land. Each operator of a hardrock minerals mining operation shall pay, for deposit in the Fund, a reclamation fee of between 0.6% and 2% of the value of the annual production from the operation. The bill prescribes civil penalties for violation of surface management or operation requirements and related regulations.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2015

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Udall, Tom [D-NM] · 4 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Michael F. Bennet (D-CO), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Edward J. Markey (D-MA)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (2)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114s2254.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/s>

Record fed-us-cong114-s2254 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114