May 2022 Bulletin
Executive Director's Message

Last week was a microcosm of just how busy and consequential this year can be for the mining industry, as we saw a perfect storm of activity in the executive, legislative and judicial branches.
Although this activity has seemingly accelerated, AEMA continues to work closely with our members and allies to meet the challenges and strategically take advantage of our opportunities.
 
We are experiencing the usual attempts to revise the Mining Law in Congress. The last week of April saw the introduction of mining legislation in both the House and Senate, by Rep. Grijalva (D-AZ) and Sen. Heinrich (D-NM), respectively. The timing of the introduction was fortuitous, as AEMA was in D.C. that week and we were able to immediately begin our outreach efforts to oppose these punitive bills.
 
I made a return trip to D.C. last week to continue working against the Grijalva bill, and I attended the legislative hearing in the House Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee where AEMA member Debbie Struhsacker, representing the Women’s Mining Coalition, gave an outstanding performance as the lone minority witness.
 
I also was honored to be invited to the White House last week for the kickoff meeting of the Interagency Working Group on Mining Regulations, Laws and Permitting. Obviously, there are those who want to severely restrict mining in the United States. After all, it was no coincidence that the White House meeting was held on May 10, the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Mining Law of 1872.
 
On the other hand, I don’t believe we have seen a time in recent history where there is so much bipartisan recognition of the need for a strong domestic mining industry to meet the supply chain challenges facing our country. Geopolitical realities certainly must be considered as the Interagency Working Group formulates recommendations for regulatory and statutory changes, and AEMA will be on the front lines engaging in this process.
 
AEMA will continue to pro-actively tell our story to prevent radical changes to the Mining Law and regulations, and/or fight judicial decisions that could severely damage the U.S. mining industry. Just as the importance of safe and reliable supplies of critical and strategic materials has never been higher, the stakes have never been greater for the mining industry and our nation. No matter the question, mining is part of the solution.
 
Mark Compton
Executive Director
Annual Meeting Update
Registration will be open soon for our 128th Annual Meeting – Secure Supply Chains Start with Us, December 4 – 9, 2022 at the Nugget Casino Resort in Reno/Sparks, Nevada.

Online registration and Nugget reservation links will be live next week. Watch your inbox for the 1st Registration Brochure and Call for Papers. We have 9 excellent short courses to choose from, and 25 information-packed technical sessions in this year’s program.

Some Exhibit Spaces are still available. Do not miss this opportunity to showcase your products and services to the mining industry. And for exploration and mining companies Core Shack provides the chance to share the results of your exploration programs with others in the industry. Contact Mike Heywood mheywood@miningamerica.org for details.

We want to acknowledge and thank the list of companies and individuals below who have become sponsors for 2022. Get all the benefits of sponsorship by joining this group and signing up as a sponsor today. Download a copy of the sponsorship form from our website.
Mining Law/Public Lands
AEMA Participates in White House Meeting on Mining Reform

The White House convened the initial meeting of the Interagency Working Group on Mining Regulations, Laws, and Permitting (IWG) on Tuesday May 10. AEMA executive director Mark Compton was invited to participate, along with various stakeholders including state and tribal officials, labor, environmental, outdoors, human rights, academic representatives, and officials from the White House National Economic Council (NEC), White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), the Department of the Interior (DOI), and other federal departments and agencies making up the IWG. You can see the full list of participants here.
 
Administration officials offering opening remarks at the meeting included NEC Director Brian Deese, DOI Deputy Secretary and IWG Chair Tommy Beaudreau, and CEQ Chairwoman Brenda Mallory. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland also made an appearance later and provided remarks. The principal moderators were Sameera Fazili, deputy director at the NEC, and Steve Feldgus, DOI deputy assistant secretary for land and mineral management. The meeting was also staffed by Stephenne Harding with CEQ and Alex Jacquez with NEC. The White House sent topics in advance to prepare for the discussion, although the agenda was not followed to the letter and the conversation was wide-ranging.
 
With pre- and post-meeting networking and discussions, the meeting lasted nearly 5 hours. It was a unique gathering of stakeholders, and the discussion was more productive than anticipated. Press was not invited and nothing from the meeting was for attribution, which resulted in an open, honest, and respectful discussion. Organizers emphasized that it is just the start of the conversation.
 
AEMA will be heavily engaged in future discussions with the IWG members, as well as working with our members to submit written comments to the DOI’s Request for Information by the end of July. 
A Busy Week for Mining Law Developments

Last week was a very busy week for Mining Law issues on Capitol Hill. Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), who chairs the House Natural Resources Committee, held a joint press conference with Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) on May 10, which, by design, was the 150th Anniversary of the enactment of the General Mining Act of 1872 (the Mining Law). Their purpose was to announce they had introduced bills to overhaul the Mining Law. Chairman Grijalva and Sen. Heinrich both named their bills (H.R.7580 and S.4083, respectively) the “Clean Energy Minerals Reform Act.” Despite the identical name, the bills are quite different. While the Heinrich bill may not be as lethal to the domestic hardrock mining industry as the Grijalva bill, both are nonstarters.
Overview of Grijalva and Heinrich Bills 

Senator Heinrich’s bill is similar in structure to former Senator Udall’s bill, but includes an addition on “special places,” discussed below. Heinrich’s bill includes: a 5-8 percent gross royalty; a use/occupancy fee on every claim (not just one fee for the overall project); increases the Claim Maintenance Fee to $200 per claim; levies an AML fee of 1-3 percent of production of hardrock operations, whether on federal, state or private land; language to make it easier to withdraw land from mineral entry and circumvent the processes established in the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) – in the name of “protecting special places”; and several other unpalatable provisions. More information on Senator Heinrich’s bill, including bill text and cosponsors, is available here.
 
Chairman Grijalva’s bill is very similar to bills he has introduced in past Congresses. It includes the familiar gross royalties of 8 percent on existing operations and 12.5 percent on new or expanding operations. It also includes: conversion from the claims system to a leasing system, with an arbitrary lease duration of 20 years and no security of tenure; a displaced materials fee or “dirt tax” of 7 cents per ton of displaced material; and suitability provisions that would allow federal land managers to veto project applications. These are just a few of the lowlights. More information on Chairman Grijalva’s bill, including bill text and cosponsors, is available here.

Both bills include new, duplicative environmental standards. It is also worth noting that many provisions in Chairman Grijalva’s bill were included in the House version of the reconciliation (Build Back Better) bill last fall, and were rejected in the Senate on a bipartisan basis as “overzealous.” 
Committee Hearing on H.R. 7580

Two days after the press conference, Chairman Grijalva chaired a hearing in the House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources on H.R. 7580. The first panel included just one witness, which was Steven Feldgus, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management at the Department of Interior. Although Mr. Feldgus came to the Biden administration from Chairman Grijalva’s staff, he notably did not offer the administration’s endorsement of H.R. 7580.

The second panel included Jeffrey Stiffarm, President of the Fort Belknap Indian Community in Harlem, Montana, Sam Kalen, Professor at the University of Wyoming College of Law and James Chen, VP of Public Policy at Rivian Automotive (an EV manufacturer) as majority witnesses. Debra Struhsacker, Co-Founder of the Women’s Mining Coalition and AEMA member, was the sole minority witness allowed, and if we do say so, it may have been unfair if we had more than one, as she did a fantastic job. We highly recommend you watch the hearing here.
 
Although this issue has been a priority for the chairman for many years, turnout at the hearing among his members was noticeably low, as many cited “scheduling conflicts” for their absences. This suggests that the caucus understands the bill has a low likelihood of receiving floor time, even if Chairman Grijalva has the votes to move it out of committee.
 
That said, AEMA worked extensively with Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee staff to provide educational materials and assist with their preparation for the hearing. We also submitted a statement for the record, which you can read here.
Rep. Horsford Response

On Monday, May 16, following the hearing, Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) sent a letter to Chairman Grijalva and Subcommittee Chairman Alan Lowenthal (D-CA) expressing his concerns with H.R.7580. Rep. Horsford, whose district includes a number of hardrock mines and the nation’s only operational lithium mine, listed a number of the benefits mining brings to his district, Nevada and the Nation. Rep. Horsford also pointed out that H.R.7580 will lead to job losses, continued dependence on mineral imports, and negatively affect rural communities – all while inflation climbs, Russia invades Ukraine and China seeks a more dominant role in world affairs. Read Rep. Horsford’s letter here.
Ninth Circuit Decision in Rosemont Case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in a split decision last week affirmed the Arizona District Court’s flawed 2019 ruling vacating the U.S. Forest Service’s record of decision for the Rosemont Copper Mine’s plan of operations. The Ninth Circuit decision, like the district court decision, ignores the plain meaning of the Mining Law and regulations, as well as 150 years of practice, interpretation and judicial precedent. Specifically, the ruling misconstrues existing legal precedent regarding rights conveyed by the Mining Law to owners of unpatented claims and the ability to use surface resources to further the development of those claims.

However, the court’s reasoning deviates from the lower court by holding open the possibility that the Forest Service could approve the ancillary mining uses under its 36 CFR part 228A mining regulations (228A regulations), and not the agency’s 36 CFR part 251 special use regulations as noted in the district court ruling. There is a very important distinction between authorizations under the 228A regulations and those under the 251 regulations. Under the 228 regulations, the agency can impose reasonable conditions to protect surface resources but cannot materially interfere with reasonably necessary mining activities. In contrast, the special use regulations provide broad discretion to deny any uses that are not “in the public interest.”
 
AEMA submitted an amicus brief to the Ninth Circuit in this case. We are communicating with Rosemont and the U.S. Forest Service, and will continue to keep you informed of further developments.
Hearing on Minnesota Mineral Withdrawal

The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will hold a virtual hearing on Tuesday, May 24 on Rep. Betty McCollum’s (D-MN) H.R. 2794, the Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act, which would withdraw more than 234,000 acres from mineral development in the Superior National Forest in Minnesota. The area in question is well outside the Wilderness area and the Mining Protection Area (buffer zone) established by the 1978 Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act.
 
The hearing can be viewed here. Julie Padilla with Twin Metals Minnesota will testify as the minority witness, and AEMA will submit a statement for the record for the hearing noting our strong opposition to the legislation.
Senate Hearing Explores Canadian Mining System

This week, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee (ENR) held a hearing on the U.S.-Canada Energy and Minerals Partnership. All witnesses were from Canada, with the purpose being to examine opportunities for both countries to bolster cross-border cooperation and trade in the energy and minerals sectors. Chairman Manchin and others spoke of working with Canadian government and industry to create a “North American minerals alliance.” Several senators asked the panelists, most of whom were government officials, questions about the Canadian environmental review and permitting process, with the intent to learn how and why their systems are more efficient in moving projects to approval, while achieving a comparable level of environmental protection. A key observation that several panelists made was that involvement of stakeholders early in the process and subsequent identification of significant issues or problems helps a great deal in obtaining stakeholder approval and/or “social license.” However, the Canadian system has other differences that allow for less litigation, preventing the process from dragging out for years in the courts. This hearing was the latest in a series ENR has held examining issues relevant to energy and mineral development, as Chairman Manchin seeks to gather information and educate committee members and staff. AEMA will continue to engage members of the committee to augment the information they receive from the hearings. You can watch the hearing here.
Environmental/Permitting
Bipartisan Senators Push Good Sam Legislation

On May 11, Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ), signed and sent a letter to leadership of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, asking them to prioritize S.3571, the Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act, and hold a hearing on it. Lummis and Kelly are cosponsors of the Good Sam bill, and are also members of EPW. Securing a hearing will be an important step in moving Good Sam forward. You can read the letter here.
Administration Releases Permitting Action Plan

Last week, the White House announced a new “Permitting Action Plan,” a strategy for expediting infrastructure projects through environmental and other reviews that are part of the federal permitting process. The plan will include the National Economic Council, the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (FPISC), Office of Management and Budget, and the Council on Environmental Quality, and seeks to fully leverage existing permitting authorities as well as new provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. When the infrastructure law was signed last year, it reauthorized the FAST-41 program and codified “One Federal Decision” language designed to cut down on bureaucracy in the permitting process by designating a lead agency in the process, and identified other measures to increase coordination among federal agencies and require accountability.

The action plan includes five key elements:
·      Accelerating permitting through early interagency coordination
·      Establishing timeline goals and tracking project information
·      Engaging in early outreach to states, tribes and local communities
·      Improving federal agency responsiveness, technical assistance and support
·      Using agency resources and environmental reviews to improve impact
Read more about the Permitting Action Plan in a White House Fact Sheet here.
Update on WOTUS Roundtables

EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have slowly begun to roll out information on the regional roundtables that are part of the public outreach process for revising the definition of “Waters of the United States” or WOTUS. The first roundtable, hosted by the National Parks Conservation Association, took place on May 9. For a complete schedule of regional roundtables, the organizations hosting, and who will participate in each event, click here and scroll down.
Unfortunately, and contrary to what has been implied up to this point, the regional roundtables will NOT be part of the administrative record. Research on the EPA website shows the regional roundtables were announced July 30, 2021, well before the Phase 1 proposed rule was published in the Federal Register. Agency facilitators for the May 9 event, however, made a point to mention that the comment period for the Phase 1 rule is now closed and the input received at the roundtables will not influence the Phase 1 process. Although the purpose of the roundtables is to ostensibly “hear the very different concerns” the different regions have about WOTUS, the role of the testimony and input gathered is not readily apparent.
Court Order on Bi-State Sage Grouse Listing

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California this week issued an order finding that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) erred in its withdrawal of a proposed threatened listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for the Bi-State Greater Sage Grouse, found on the California-Nevada border. The court found that the Service’s decision was not based on the best scientific and commercial data available and was therefore arbitrary and capricious. The ruling vacated the Service’s 2020 decision to withdraw a proposed listing, reinstated the 2013 proposed listing, and remanded to the Service to issue a final listing decision on for the bi-state sage grouse.
 
Of course, this occurs at the same time the Bureau of Land Management is beginning the process to review the 2015 and 2019 Land Use Plans and amendments, and the evaluation of a proposed withdrawal of about 10 million acres of federal lands from mineral location and entry in six states.
Public Outreach
AEMA Presents at Mine Design Conference

AEMA Government Affairs Manager Sid Smith presented last week at the Mine Design Operations and Closure Conference hosted by Montana Tech University. Sid spoke about the various events that are putting mining on the forefront of Washington, DC’s agenda, with a particular focus on the Interagency Working Group, mentioned above. The Mine Design Conference has been going strong for 30 years now, and AEMA was honored to participate.
Access to Visuals, Articles and Other Industry Members

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn to access our latest graphics, news articles and engage with the rest of the mining industry. If you are interested in coordinating social media efforts with AEMA, reach out to Kenna O'Neill.
Member & Industry News
University of Idaho Hosts Industry Roundtable

The University of Idaho, in conjunction with the Idaho Geological Survey, convened an industry roundtable, May 11 at its Moscow Campus, consisting of AEMA, the Idaho Mining Association, and several Idaho mining and exploration companies. The goal of the roundtable was for university faculty leaders to hear from companies about the status of Idaho’s mining industry, the needs of the companies, and how the university can best meet these needs. Deans and chairs of several departments participated, showing great interest in supporting the industry of the state and region by producing qualified and well-rounded graduates and relevant research, but were also interested in gauging demand and finding out if there were any other needs they could meet. It was a very positive and constructive dialogue, with the university and industry agreeing that more and sustained engagement would be needed.  
AEMA Exhibits at GSN Great Basin Symposium

AEMA exhibited at the Geological Society of Nevada’s Great Basin Symposium 2020 May 1-4 in the Nugget Casino, Reno, NV. Due to Covid, the every 5 year event was postponed until 2022 (the next Great Basin Symposium will be in 2027). AEMA was one of 99 exhibit booths at the well-attended event which attracted nearly 1200 attendees and speakers. In addition to a full program of talks, the GSN hosted 5 field trips. The two year postponement did not dampen the mood of the attendees as the industry continues to improve with new technologies and new exploration projects. 
AEMA's Elko Hospitality Nite Returns!

AEMA will once again coordinate the increasingly popular Elko Hospitality Nite on Thursday, June 9 from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. at the Maverick Casino & Hotel Elko in Nevada. It is an evening of networking and fun, mingled with food, drinks and door prizes.

Elko Hospitality Nite Sponsors
Thank you to all who have joined the Elko Hospitality Nite sponsor list and the evening door prize donors list. We still have space on the banners. Please join us for this very successful evening of fun. Contact Pat Heywood - pheywood@miningamerica.org for details.
Event Sponsors
AGRU America
Bariod IDP
Boart Longyear Contracting Services Group
Dyno Nobel
Geotemps, Inc. & Geopros
IDS
Itasca Denver, Inc.
Knight Piésold and Co.
Laszlo Photography
Major Drilling America. Inc.
McGinley & Associates
Mill Man Steel
Mitsubishi Materials U.S.A.
NewFields
OREAS North America, Inc.
Parsons Behle & Latimer
Pray & Company
Premier Drilling
RockTech Exploration Products USA
Sacrison Engineering
Schramm, Inc.
Small Mine Development
SRK Consulting (U.S.), Inc.
Stantec
Techline Services Inc.
The Mining Record
TonaTec Exploration LLC
Victaulic
World Sensing
Door Prize Sponsors
Bariod IDP
Boart Longyear Contracting Services Group
Coeur Products
Environmental Products & Applications 
Geotemps, Inc. & Geopros
McGinley & Associates
Mitsubishi Materials U.S.A.
NewFields
Placer Gold Design
Premier Drilling
RockTech Exploration Products USA
Sacrison Engineering
SRK Consulting (U.S.), Inc.
Stantec
The Mining Record
TonaTec Exploration LLC
Montana Mining Association Seeking Executive Management

The Montana Mining Association is seeking requests for proposal (RFP) to contractually fulfill the needs for Executive Management. The MMA Executive Management Team is responsible for the successful execution of the Montana Mining Association, a trade association dedicated to assisting mining companies, small miners, and allied trade members succeed, understand, comply, and function in a complex business and regulatory world.

More details can be found here. Deadline to submit an RFP has been extended to July 1, 2022.
Remember to Update Your Profile!
Have you changed jobs, email address or have a new phone number?

Make sure to update your information in your Member Profile. This will update our records as well as the online Membership Database that is available under Member Resources.

Not sure how to update? Check out our guide here: Updating Your Member Profile