S. 1871 — what changed

changed In this Act:Congress finds that—

added “(g) Intergovernmental critical minerals task force

added “(1) Purposes—The purposes of the task force established under paragraph (3)(B) are—

added “(A) to assess the reliance of the United States on the People’s Republic of China, and other covered countries, for critical minerals, and the resulting national security risks associated with that reliance;

added “(B) to make recommendations to the President for the implementation of this Act with regard to critical minerals, including—

added “(i) the congressional declarations of policies in section 3; and

added “(ii) revisions to the program plan of the President and the initiatives required under this section;

added “(C) to make recommendations to secure United States supply chains for critical minerals;

added “(D) to make recommendations to reduce the reliance of the United States, and partners and allies of the United States, on critical mineral supply chains involving covered countries; and

added “(E) consistent with ongoing efforts of other Federal departments, agencies, and other entities, to facilitate cooperation, coordination, and mutual accountability among each level of the Federal Government, Indian Tribes, and State, local, and territorial governments, on a holistic response to the dependence on covered countries for critical minerals across the United States.

added “(2) Definitions—In this subsection:

added “(A) Appropriate committees of Congress—The term appropriate committees of Congress means—

added “(i) the Committees on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Energy and Natural Resources, Armed Services, Environment and Public Works, Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Finance, and Foreign Relations of the Senate; and

added “(ii) the Committees on Oversight and Accountability, Natural Resources, Armed Services, Ways and Means, Foreign Affairs, and Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives.

added “(B) Chairperson; Co-Chairperson—The terms Chairperson and Co-Chairperson, respectively, mean the Chairperson or Co-Chairperson of the task force designated by the President pursuant to paragraph (3)(A).

added “(C) Covered country—The term covered country means—

added “(i) a covered nation (as defined in section 4872(d) of title 10, United States Code); and

added “(ii) any other country determined by the task force to be a geostrategic competitor or adversary of the United States with respect to critical minerals.

added “(D) Critical mineral—The term critical mineral has the meaning given the term in section 7002(a) of the Energy Act of 2020 (30 U.S.C. 1606(a)).

added “(E) Indian Tribe—The term Indian Tribe has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).

added “(F) Task force—The term task force means the task force established under paragraph (3)(B).

added “(3) Establishment—Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the President shall—

added “(A) designate a Chairperson, or 2 individuals as Co-Chairpersons, for the task force, who shall be—

added “(i) the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs;

added “(ii) the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy; or

added “(iii) another relevant member of the Executive Office of the President; and

added “(B) acting through the Executive Office of the President, establish a task force.

added “(4) Composition; meetings

added “(A) Appointment—The Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons, in consultation with key intergovernmental, private, and public sector stakeholders, shall appoint to the task force representatives with expertise in critical mineral supply chains from Federal agencies, including not less than 1 representative from each of—

added “(i) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;

added “(ii) the Bureau of Land Management;

added “(iii) the Critical Minerals Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council;

added “(iv) the Department of Agriculture;

added “(v) the Department of Commerce;

added “(vi) the Department of Defense;

added “(vii) the Department of Energy;

added “(viii) the Department of Homeland Security;

added “(ix) the Department of the Interior;

added “(x) the Department of Labor;

added “(xi) the Department of State;

added “(xii) the Department of Transportation;

added “(xiii) the Environmental Protection Agency;

added “(xiv) the Export-Import Bank of the United States;

added “(xv) the Forest Service;

added “(xvi) the General Services Administration;

added “(xvii) the National Economic Council;

added “(xviii) the National Science Foundation;

added “(xix) the National Security Council;

added “(xx) the Office of Management and Budget;

added “(xxi) the Office of the United States Trade Representative;

added “(xxii) the United States International Development Finance Corporation;

added “(xxiii) the United States Geological Survey; and

added “(xxiv) any other relevant Federal entity, as determined by the Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons.

added “(B) Consultation—The task force shall consult individuals with expertise in critical mineral supply chains, individuals from States whose communities, businesses, and industries are involved in aspects of critical mineral supply chains, including mining and processing operations, and individuals from a diverse and balanced cross-section of—

added “(i) intergovernmental consultees, including—

added “(I) State governments;

added “(II) local governments;

added “(III) territorial governments; and

added “(IV) Indian Tribes; and

added “(ii) other stakeholders, including—

added “(I) academic research institutions;

added “(II) corporations;

added “(III) nonprofit organizations;

added “(IV) private sector stakeholders;

added “(V) trade associations;

added “(VI) mining industry stakeholders; and

added “(VII) labor representatives.

added “(C) Meetings

added “(i) Initial meeting—Not later than 90 days after the date on which all representatives of the task force have been appointed, the task force shall hold the first meeting of the task force.

added “(ii) Frequency—The task force shall meet not less than once every 90 days.

added “(5) Duties

added “(A) In general—The duties of the task force shall include—

added “(i) facilitating cooperation, coordination, and mutual accountability for the Federal Government, Indian Tribes, and State, local, and territorial governments to enhance data sharing and transparency to build more robust and secure domestic supply chains for critical minerals in support of the purposes described in paragraph (1);

added “(ii) providing recommendations with respect to—

added “(I) increasing capacities for mining, processing, refinement, reuse, and recycling of critical minerals in the United States to facilitate the environmentally responsible production of domestic resources to meet national critical mineral needs, in consultation with Tribal and local communities;

added “(II) identifying how statutes, regulations, and policies related to the critical mineral supply chain, such as stockpiling and development finance, could be modified to accelerate environmentally responsible domestic and international production of critical minerals, in consultation with Indian Tribes and local communities;

added “(III) strengthening the domestic workforce to support growing critical mineral supply chains with good-paying, safe jobs in the United States;

added “(IV) identifying alternative domestic sources to critical minerals that the United States currently relies on the People’s Republic of China or other covered countries for mining, processing, refining, and recycling, including the availability, capacity, cost, and quality of those domestic alternatives;

added “(V) identifying critical minerals and critical mineral supply chains that the United States can onshore, in whole or in part, at a competitive value and quality, for those minerals and supply chains that the United States relies on the People’s Republic of China or other covered countries to provide;

added “(VI) opportunities for the Federal Government, Indian Tribes, and State, local, and territorial governments to mitigate risks to the national security of the United States with respect to supply chains for critical minerals that the United States currently relies on the People’s Republic of China or other covered countries for mining, processing, refining, and recycling; and

added “(VII) evaluating and integrating the recommendations of the Critical Minerals Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council into the recommendations of the task force;

added “(iii) prioritizing the recommendations in clause (ii), taking into consideration economic costs and focusing on the critical mineral supply chains with vulnerabilities posing the most significant risks to the national security of the United States;

added “(iv) recommending specific strategies, to be carried out in coordination with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Commerce, to strengthen international partnerships in furtherance of critical minerals supply chain security with international allies and partners, including a strategy to collaborate with governments of the allies and partners described in subparagraph (B) to develop advanced mining, refining, separation and processing technologies; and

added “(v) other duties, as determined by the Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons.

added “(B) Allies and partners—The allies and partners referred to in subparagraph (A) include—

added “(i) countries participating in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue;

added “(ii) countries that are—

added “(I) signatories to the Abraham Accords; or

added “(II) participants in the Negev Forum; and

added “(iii) countries that are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

added “(C) Report—The Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons shall—

added “(i) not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, and every 60 days thereafter until the requirements under subsection (a) are satisfied, brief the appropriate committees of Congress on the status of the compliance of the President with completing the requirements under that subsection;

added “(ii) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report, which shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex, that describes any findings, guidelines, and recommendations created in performing the duties under subparagraph (A);

added “(iii) not later than 120 days after the date on which the Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons submits the report under clause (ii), publish that report in the Federal Register, except that the Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons shall redact information from the report that the Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons determines could pose a risk to the national security of the United States by being publicly available; and

added “(iv) brief the appropriate committees of Congress twice per year.

added “(6) Duplication of effort—The Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons, to the maximum extent practicable, shall carry out the task force in a manner that does not duplicate the efforts of other Federal departments, agencies, or other entities.

added “(7) Sunset—The task force shall terminate on the date that is 90 days after the date on which the task force completes the requirements under paragraph (5)(C).

added “(8) No additional funds—No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated for the purpose of carrying out this subsection.”

removed Congress finds that—