China’s mineral extortion has brought the age of U.S. minerals hand-wringing to an end. The Trump administration is leading the charge to address the nation’s alarming mineral import reliance and break China’s chokehold on global mineral supply chains. And now Congress must jump in with equal determination to address this real and glaring vulnerability.
The expansion of the nation’s critical minerals list by 10 minerals was just the latest important step forward – a recognition of how dire the situation has become and how essential these materials are to our economy and national security. However, while momentum from the administration is encouraging, Congress has an opportunity to supercharge it and turn the tide against China’s weaponization of global mineral supplies.
Three achievable actions could make an immediate difference to get shovels in the ground and transform U.S. mineral potential into domestic productive capacity.
First, Congress should advance the durable and lasting permitting reforms in Chairman Bruce Westerman’s bipartisan Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act.
For decades, the U.S. has faced increasingly significant challenges to permit and approve projects that provide the minerals, raw materials and energy that are the nation’s lifeblood. It now takes a stunning 29 years to bring a mine online in the U.S., longer than all other countries but one.
An inefficient National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process is a primary contributor to the delays and uncertainty that become crippling deterrents to capital investment in domestic mining projects. The implementation of NEPA and its use as a weaponized tool for litigation has allowed this well-intentioned law to stray far from its intended purpose and underlying text. The SPEED Act is an important step forward to address these challenges.
Second, Congress should advance the bipartisan Mining Regulatory Clarity Act (MRCA), which would rectify an egregious court decision, returning land use interpretation to what it always has been under the General Mining Law. This is a commonsense action that will provide much-needed regulatory certainty and clarity to miners and cut through red tape holding back investment and sorely needed new production.
Finally, Congress should reshape and fix the 45X advanced manufacturing tax credit to give it the reach and impact it needs to promote domestic mining. While the credit was envisioned to support the full materials supply chain, under current interpretation only mining operations that also process their production can qualify for the credit. That reading omits many of the nation’s mining operations – or potential projects – from inclusion. A legislative fix that addresses this omission, promotes domestic production and expands the minerals eligible for inclusion will give it teeth to help level the playing field against Chinese market manipulation.
Together, these actions would bring sorely needed certainty and efficiency to U.S. mining, boost the competitiveness of the entire domestic industry and dramatically expand the impact of the administration’s work to end China’s mineral extortion and rebuild U.S. mineral security.
While there is far more we can and should do – from investment in the mining workforce and mining and trade schools to the development of a strategic minerals reserve – these three steps are critically important actions that can make a difference today.
The global minerals race is one we cannot afford to lose. With the right policies in place, the U.S. can reclaim control of its mineral destiny — reducing reliance on China and other foreign sources, strengthening our industrial base and creating community-supporting jobs across the country. America’s mineral potential is vast. What’s needed now is the political will to turn potential into production and the secure supply chains our economic and national security demand.