Sec. 103. Prospecting license and hardrock leases
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No person may conduct mineral prospecting for commercial purposes for any hardrock mineral on Federal lands without a prospecting license or a small miners lease. The Secretary may, under such rules and regulations as the Secretary may prescribe and with the concurrence of the relevant surface management agency, grant an applicant a prospecting license that shall give the exclusive right to prospect for specified hardrock minerals on Federal lands for a period of not exceeding two years.
The area subject to such a license shall not exceed 2,560 acres of land, in reasonably compact form. The Secretary shall charge a fee for each license application to cover the costs of processing the license, and the license shall be subject to annual rentals equal to $10 per acre per year. A prospecting license must conform with the terms and conditions of a comprehensive land use plan approved under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) or the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 ( 16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.).
For areas where a comprehensive land use plan treating hardrock mining as a multiple-use activity has not been completed, the Secretary concerned shall ensure that the land to be covered by the license is suitable for mineral activities. A prospecting license may be extended for up to an additional four years upon a showing by the licensee that the licensee explored with reasonable diligence and was unable to determine the existence and workability of a valuable deposit covered by the license, or that the failure to perform diligent prospecting activities was due to conditions beyond the licensee’s control.
Upon a showing to the satisfaction of the Secretary by a prospecting licensee under subsection
(a)that a valuable deposit of a hardrock mineral has been discovered by the licensee within an area covered by the prospecting license and with the consent of the surface agency, the licensee shall be entitled to a lease for any or all of the land included in the prospecting license, as well as any nonmineral lands necessary for processing or milling operations, at a royalty of no less than 12.5 percent of the gross value of production of hardrock minerals or mineral concentrates or products derived from hardrock minerals under the lease. Rentals for such lease shall be set by the Secretary at no less than $10 per acre per year, with rentals paid in any one year credited against royalties accruing for that year. The recipient of such lease is not entitled to an operations permit. A lease under this section shall be for a period of 20 years, with the right to renew for successive periods of 10 years if hardrock minerals are being produced in commercial quantities under the lease. If hardrock minerals are not being produced in commercial quantities at the end of the primary term or any subsequent term of such a lease, the Secretary may issue a 10-year extension of the lease in the interest of conservation, reclamation maintenance, or upon a successful showing by the lessee that the lease cannot be successfully operated at a profit or for other reasons. No more than one extension under this subparagraph may be issued. No person may take, hold, own, or control at one time, whether acquired directly from the Secretary under this Act or otherwise, hardrock mining leases or licenses for an aggregate of more than 20,480 acres in any one State. Subject to paragraph (2), The Secretary— may reduce the royalty rate for a lease upon a showing by clear and convincing evidence by the person conducting mineral activities under the lease that production would not occur without the reduction in royalty; and may reduce royalty and rental rates for a lease to encourage exploration for and development of hardrock minerals classified as strategic and critical by the Department of Energy. The Secretary may not reduce the royalty rate for a lease pursuant to paragraph
(1)to a royalty rate of less than 6.25 percent. The Secretary may include in any lease or license issued under this Act such provisions as are necessary to adequately protect the lands and other resources in the vicinity of the area subject to the lease or license. For land not managed by the Department of the Interior, the Secretary shall consult with the appropriate surface management agency in formulating such provisions.
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