Sec. 2. Definitions and references

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As used in this Act: The term Abandoned Hardrock Mine Reclamation Program means the program established by section 40704 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act ( 30 U.S.C. 1245 ). The term adjacent land means any land not more than 2 miles from the boundary of a described land tract. The term affiliate means, with respect to any person, any of the following: Any person that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with such person. Any partner of such person.

Any person owning at least 10 percent of the voting shares of such person. The term agency has the meaning given the term in section 3502 of title 44, United States Code. The term applicant means any person applying for a lease, license, or permit under this Act or a modification to or a renewal of a lease, license, or permit issued under this Act. The term beneficiation means the crushing and grinding of hardrock mineral ore and such processes as are employed to free the mineral from other constituents, including physical and chemical separation techniques.

The term casual use — means mineral activities that do not ordinarily result in any disturbance of Federal land and resources; includes collection of geochemical, rock, soil, or mineral specimens using handtools, hand panning, or nonmotorized sluicing; and does not include— the use of mechanized earth-moving equipment, suction dredging, or explosives; the use of motor vehicles in areas closed to off-road vehicles; the construction of roads or drill pads; or the use of toxic or hazardous materials.

The term claim holder means— any person holding a mining claim, millsite, or tunnel site located under the general mining laws or this Act and maintained in compliance with such laws; and any agent of such person. The term control means having the ability, directly or indirectly, to determine (without regard to whether exercised through 1 or more corporate structures) the manner in which an entity conducts mineral activities, through any means, including— ownership interest; authority to commit the real or financial assets of the entity; position as a director, officer, or partner of the entity; or contractual arrangement.

The term displaced material means any raw ore or waste dislodged from its location by human disturbance, including from hardrock mineral activities. The term exploration — means creating surface disturbance, other than casual use, to evaluate the type, extent, quantity, or quality of minerals present; includes mineral activities associated with sampling, drilling, and analyzing hardrock mineral values; and does not include extraction of mineral material for commercial use or sale.

The term Federal land — means any land, and any interest in land, that is owned by the United States; and does not include— lands in the National Park System; Indian lands; or lands on the Outer Continental Shelf. The term hardrock mineral — means any mineral that was subject to location under the general mining laws as of the effective date of this Act, and that is not subject to disposition under— the Mineral Leasing Act ( 30 U.S.C. 181 et seq. ); the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 ( 30 U.S.C. 1001 et seq. ); the Act of July 31, 1947, commonly known as the Materials Act of 1947 ( 30 U.S.C. 601 et seq. ); or the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands ( 30 U.S.C. 351 et seq. ); and does not include any mineral that is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States and is— held in trust by the United States for any Indian or Indian Tribe, as defined in section 2 of the Indian Mineral Development Act of 1982 ( 25 U.S.C. 2101 ); or owned by any Indian or Indian Tribe, as defined in that section.

The term Indian lands means— lands held in trust for the benefit of an Indian Tribe or Indian; lands held by an Indian Tribe or Indian subject to a restriction by the United States against alienation; or lands held by an Alaska Native village, village corporation, or regional corporation, as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act ( 43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. ). The term Indian Tribe means any Indian Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village, village corporation, or regional corporation, as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act ( 43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. ), that is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians.

The term mining claim means any mining claim made pursuant to— this Act; or the Mining Law of 1872 ( 30 U.S.C. 22 et seq. ) before the effective date of this Act. The term mineral activities means any activity carried out on a mining claim, millsite, or tunnel site, authorized by a lease, license, or permit issued under this Act, for, related to, or incidental to, mineral exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, or reclamation activities for any hardrock mineral. The term National Conservation System unit means any unit of the National Park System, National Wildlife Refuge System, National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, National Wilderness Preservation System, National Landscape Conservation System, or National Trails System, or a National Conservation Area, a National Recreation Area, a Wilderness Study Area, a National Monument, or any unit of the National Wilderness Preservation System or lands within the National Forest System, including the following:

National Volcanic Monuments. Recreation Areas, Scenic Recreation Areas, and Winter Recreation Areas. Scenic Areas, Scenic-Research Areas, Scenic Highways, and National Scenic and Wildlife Areas. National Game and Wildlife Preserves. Special Management, Wildlife, Conservation, and Protection Areas, including botanical, hydrological (watershed), geological, historical, paleontological, and zoological areas. Experimental Forests, Ranges, and Watersheds. Research Sites and Research Natural Areas.

Inventoried Roadless Area, Colorado Roadless Area, and Idaho Roadless Area. Recommended Wilderness and Primitive Areas. The term operator means— any person proposing or authorized by a permit issued under this Act to conduct mineral activities; and any agent of such person. The term person means an individual, Indian Tribe, partnership, association, society, joint venture, joint stock company, firm, company, corporation, cooperative, or other organization and any instrumentality of State or local government, including any publicly owned utility or publicly owned corporation of State or local government.

The term processing means processes downstream of beneficiation employed to prepare hardrock mineral ore into a final marketable product, including smelting and electrolytic refining. The term raw ore means ore in its unprocessed form, containing profitable amounts of a hardrock mineral. The term reclamation means taking measures following the disturbance of Federal land by mineral activities to meet applicable performance standards and achieve conditions required by the Secretary concerned at the conclusion of such mineral activities, including, where applicable— isolation, control, or removal of acid-forming, toxic, or deleterious substances; regrading and reshaping to conform with adjacent landforms, facilitate revegetation, control drainage, and minimize erosion; rehabilitation of fisheries or wildlife habitat; placement of growth medium and establishment of self-sustaining revegetation; removal or stabilization of buildings, structures, or other support facilities; plugging of drill holes and closure of underground workings; and providing for post-mining monitoring, maintenance, or treatment.

The term sacred site means any specific delineated location on Federal land that is identified by an Indian Tribe— as sacred by virtue of its established religious significance to, or ceremonial use by, an Indian religion; or to be of established cultural significance. The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior, unless otherwise specified. The term Secretary concerned means— the Secretary of Agriculture (acting through the Chief of the Forest Service) with respect to National Forest System land; and the Secretary of the Interior (acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management) with respect to other Federal land.

The term small miner means a person (including all related parties thereto) that— holds not more than 10 mining claims, millsites, or tunnel sites, or any combination thereof, on Federal land; is a claim holder or operator with respect to not more than 200 acres of Federal land; certifies to the Secretary in writing that the person had annual gross income in the preceding calendar year from mineral production in an amount less than $50,000; and has performed assessment work required under the Mining Law of 1872 ( 30 U.S.C. 22 et seq. ) to maintain any mining claims held by the person and all related parties thereto for the assessment year ending on noon of September 1 of the calendar year in which payment of the claim maintenance fee was due.

For purposes of subparagraph (A), with respect to any person, the term all related parties means— the spouse or qualifying child (as such term is defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) of such person; or an affiliate of the person concerned. For purposes of subparagraph (A)(iii), the dollar amount shall be applied, for a person, to the aggregate of all annual gross income from mineral production under all mining claims held by or assigned to such person and all related parties with respect to such person, including mining claims located or for which a patent was issued before the effective date of this Act.

The term temporary cessation means a halt in mineral activities for a continuous period that does not exceed 5 years. The term ton means 2,000 pounds avoirdupois (.90718 metric ton). The term unnecessary or undue degradation means irreparable harm to significant scientific, cultural, or environmental resources on Federal land. The term valuable mineral deposit means a deposit of hardrock minerals that is of sufficient value for a prudent operator to extract, remove, and market at a profit.

The term waste means rock that must be fractured and removed in order to gain access to raw ore. Any reference in this Act to the term general mining laws is a reference to those Acts that generally comprise chapters 2, 12A, and 16, and sections 161 and 162, of title 30, United States Code. Any reference in this Act to the Act of July 23, 1955, is a reference to the Act entitled An Act to amend the Act of July 31, 1947 (61 Stat. 681) and the mining laws to provide for multiple use of the surface of the same tracts of the public lands, and for other purposes ( 30 U.S.C. 601 et seq. ).

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