[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5030 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5030
To establish a National Critical Minerals Council within the Executive
Office of the President to develop and coordinate the implementation of
a national critical mineral strategy for the United States, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 12, 2024
Mr. Hickenlooper (for himself and Mr. Tillis) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a National Critical Minerals Council within the Executive
Office of the President to develop and coordinate the implementation of
a national critical mineral strategy for the United States, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``National Critical Minerals Council
Act''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL CRITICAL MINERALS COUNCIL.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Council.--The term ``Council'' means the National
Critical Minerals Council established by subsection (b).
(2) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
term in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1001(a)).
(3) Mining university.--The term ``mining university''
means an institution of higher education with a mining,
metallurgical, geological, or mineral engineering program
accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and
Technology, Inc.
(4) Senior executive branch official.--The term ``senior
executive branch official'' means any officer or employee
described in any of paragraphs (3) through (8) of section
13103(f) of title 5, United States Code.
(b) Establishment.--There is established in the Executive Office of
the President a National Critical Minerals Council.
(c) Objectives.--The objectives of the Council are to develop and
coordinate the implementation of a national critical mineral strategy
for the United States--
(1) to reduce reliance on foreign adversaries for mineral
imports; and
(2) to reduce single points of failure in the mineral
supply chain of the United States.
(d) Staff.--
(1) Chair.--The Council shall be chaired by the Vice
President.
(2) Membership.--The Council shall comprise such heads of
executive agencies (as defined in section 105 of title 5,
United States Code) and senior executive branch officials as
the President determines to be appropriate.
(3) Support.--
(A) Chief minerals advisor.--
(i) Appointment.--The President shall
appoint a Chief Minerals Advisor.
(ii) Duties.--The Chief Minerals Advisor
shall--
(I) carry out the day-to-day
operations of the Council;
(II) serve as the Executive
Secretary of the Council; and
(III) report to the Vice President.
(B) Other staff.--In addition to the Chief Minerals
Advisor, the Council may employ not more than 5
employees to carry out the duties of the Council.
(e) Duties.--
(1) In general.--In carrying out this section, the Council
shall--
(A) coordinate mining and mineral research,
development, deployment, and commercialization funding
priorities and opportunities across all Federal
agencies and develop a central platform on which the
opportunities may be viewed and applications may be
submitted;
(B) take actions to improve the visibility of the
United States as a preferred partner for critical
mineral projects and agreements in comparison to
foreign adversaries, including collaborating with non-
United States entities and governments from allied
nations;
(C) coordinate with relevant Federal agencies to
consistently and proactively track investments in
critical mineral and mining-related projects around the
world made by the People's Republic of China and other
foreign adversaries, as determined by the Chief
Minerals Advisor;
(D) work with experts described in paragraph
(3)(A)--
(i) to prioritize 5 critical minerals, as
determined by the Chief Minerals Advisor, and
identify the top challenges and necessary
interventions associated with securing stable
supply chains for those prioritized critical
minerals; and
(ii) to expand the list of prioritized
critical minerals under clause (i) to include
additional critical minerals, as determined by
the Chief Minerals Advisor; and
(E) carry out other activities, as determined by
the Chief Minerals Advisor, to fulfill the objectives
described in subsection (c).
(2) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the Council
identifies critical minerals for prioritization under
subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1), and every year thereafter,
the Chief Minerals Advisor shall submit to the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate, and the Committee on Natural Resources
and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives, a report describing--
(A) the critical minerals selected for
prioritization under that subparagraph; and
(B) the top challenges and necessary interventions
identified under that subparagraph.
(3) Consultation.--In carrying out this section, the
Council may consult experts in mineral supply chains,
including--
(A) experts from--
(i) mining universities and other
institutions of higher education, including--
(I) Tribal colleges;
(II) historically Black colleges
and universities; and
(III) community colleges;
(ii) National Laboratories;
(iii) relevant private industries;
(iv) Federal agencies; and
(v) non-Federal organizations; and
(B) individuals from--
(i) State and local governments; and
(ii) Indian Tribes (as defined in section 4
of the Indian Self-Determination and Education
Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)).
(f) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, the President shall submit to Congress a report that
describes--
(1) the composition and function of the Council;
(2) a national critical mineral strategy to achieve the
objectives described in subsection (c); and
(3) an implementation plan that--
(A) describes how represented agencies intend to
carry out the national critical mineral strategy; and
(B) includes clear benchmarks to evaluate how the
strategy and implementation plan are fulfilling the
objectives described in subsection (c).
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