§ 1231a. Abandoned mine reclamation fund authorization of appropriations

1,261 words·~6 min read·/usc/title-30/section-1231a

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(a)In general There is authorized to be appropriated, for deposit into the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund established by section 401(a) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1231(a)) $11,293,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, to remain available until expended.

(b)Use of funds

(1)In general Subject to subsection (g), amounts made available under subsection

(a)shall be used to provide, as expeditiously as practicable, to States and Indian Tribes described in paragraph

(2)annual grants for abandoned mine land and water reclamation projects under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.).

(2)Eligible grant recipients Grants may be made under paragraph

(1)to—

(A)States and Indian Tribes that have a State or Tribal program approved under section 405 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1235);

(B)States and Indian Tribes that are certified under section 411(a) of that Act (30 U.S.C. 1240a(a)); and

(C)States and Indian Tribes that are referred to in section 402(g)(8)(B) of that Act (30 U.S.C. 1232(g)(8)(B)).

(3)Contract aggregation In applying for grants under paragraph (1), States and Indian Tribes may aggregate bids into larger statewide or regional contracts.

(c)Covered activities

(1)In general Except as provided in paragraph (2), grants under subsection (b)(1) shall only be used for activities described in subsections

(a)and

(b)of section 403 and section 410 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1233, 1240).

(2)Long-term abandoned mine land reclamation

(A)In general Not more than 30 percent of the total amount of a grant made annually under subsection (b)(1) may be retained by the recipient of the grant if those amounts are deposited into a long-term abandoned mine land reclamation fund established under State law, from which amounts (together with all interest earned on the amounts) are expended by the State or Indian Tribe, as applicable, for—

(i)the abatement of the causes and the treatment of the effects of acid mine drainage resulting from coal mining practices, including for the costs of building, operating, maintaining, and rehabilitating acid mine drainage treatment systems;

(ii)the prevention, abatement, and control of subsidence; or

(iii)the prevention, abatement, and control of coal mine fires.

(B)Reporting requirements Each recipient of a grant under subsection (b)(1) that deposits grant amounts into a long-term abandoned mine land reclamation fund under subparagraph

(A)shall—

(i)offer amendments to the inventory maintained under section 403(c) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1233(c)) to reflect the use of the amounts for—

(I)acid mine drainage abatement and treatment;

(II)subsidence prevention, abatement, and control; and

(III)coal mine fire prevention, abatement, and control; and

(ii)include in the annual grant report of the recipient information on the status and balance of amounts in the long-term abandoned mine land reclamation fund.

(C)Term Amounts retained under subparagraph

(A)shall not be subject to—

(i)subsection (d)(4)(B); or

(ii)any other limitation on the length of the term of an annual grant under subsection (b)(1).

(d)Allocation

(1)In general Subject to subsection (e), the Secretary of the Interior shall allocate and distribute amounts made available for grants under subsection (b)(1) to States and Indian Tribes on an equal annual basis over a 15-year period beginning on November 15, 2021, based on the number of tons of coal historically produced in the States or from the applicable Indian land before August 3, 1977, regardless of whether the State or Indian Tribe is certified under section 411(a) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1240a(a)).

(2)Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act exception Section 401(f)(3)(B) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1231(f)(3)(B)) shall not apply to grant funds distributed under subsection (b)(1).

(3)Report to Congress on allocations

(A)In general Not later than 6 years after the date on which the first allocation to States and Indian Tribes is made under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Interior shall submit to Congress a report that describes any progress made under this section in addressing outstanding reclamation needs under subsection

(a)or

(b)of section 403 or section 410 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation and 1 Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1233, 1240).

(B)Input The Secretary of the Interior shall—

(i)prior to submitting the report under subparagraph (A), solicit the input of the States and Indian Tribes regarding the progress referred to in that subparagraph; and

(ii)include in the report submitted to Congress under that subparagraph a description of any input received under clause (i).

(4)Redistribution of funds

(A)Evaluation Not later than 20 years after November 15, 2021, the Secretary of the Interior shall evaluate grant payments to States and Indian Tribes made under this section.

(B)Unused funds On completion of the evaluation under subparagraph (A), States and Indian Tribes shall return any unused funds under this section to the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund.

(e)Total amount of grant The total amount of grant funding provided under subsection (b)(1) to an eligible State or Indian Tribe shall be not less than $20,000,000, to the extent that the amount needed for reclamation projects described in that subsection on the land of the State or Indian Tribe is not less than $20,000,000.

(f)Priority In addition to the priorities described in section 403(a) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1233(a)), in providing grants under this section, priority may also be given to reclamation projects described in subsection (b)(1) that provide employment for current and former employees of the coal industry.

(g)Reservation Of the funds made available under subsection (a), $25,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary of the Interior to provide States and Indian Tribes with the financial and technical assistance necessary for the purpose of making amendments to the inventory maintained under section 403(c) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1233(c)).

(Pub. L. 117–58, div. D, title VII, § 40701, Nov. 15, 2021, 135 Stat. 1091; Pub. L. 117–328, div. DD, title VIII, § 801, Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5622.)

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