White House opposes House mining bill, but stops short of veto threat

The White House said Tuesday that it strongly opposes a “vaguely worded” House bill shortening the waiting period for mining permits, but stopped short of issuing a veto threat.

The National Strategic and Critical Mineral Production Act, H.R. 4402, would make any domestic mine containing “strategic and critical minerals” an infrastructure project, in accordance with a definition laid out in a March 22 executive order from President Obama.

That designation brings a quicker approval process for permits. The mining industry strongly supports the bill, which is slated for a vote later this week, while environmentalists oppose it on the grounds that it would eliminate oversight.

The White House, in a "statement of administration policy" released Tuesday, said the GOP-led bill “would undermine and remove the environmental safeguards, for, at a minimum, almost all types of hardrock mines on federal lands.” 

“Protection of the public through sound federal decision-making would be circumvented by the bill's provisions, which include, among other things, the elimination of appropriate reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act and the circumvention of public involvement in and the formulation of alternatives to any mining proposals,” the White House said.

Debate on the mining bill, which is sponsored by Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.), is slated to get under way Wednesday, but a final vote isn't likely until Thursday.

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