As pressures mount for the United States to bolster its position as a non-fuel mineral raw materials producer amidst the ongoing battery tech revolution, a group of U.S. Senators have introduced legislation to boost domestic production of critical minerals.

The legislation, sponsored by Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Joe Manchin, D-W. Va., Martha McSally, R-Ariz., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, would “codify the methodology used in a 2017 executive order that was signed by President Donald Trump ‘to designate a list of critical minerals and require that list to be updated at least every three years.’ The measure also would require a nationwide resource assessments for every critical mineral and the implementation of ‘several practical, common sense permitting reforms for the Department of the Interior (DOI) and Department of Agriculture Forest Service to reduce delays in the federal process.’”

The bill was dropped on May 2nd, the same day government officials met with representatives of carmakers, mining companies and consultants to discuss the need to streamline U.S. mineral resource policy against a growing sense that the United States is becoming a “bystander” in the current battery arms race.

The American Mineral Security Act, similar versions of which Sen. Murkowski had introduced in previous Congresses, would:

Says Sen. Murkowski:

“Our reliance on China and other nations for critical minerals costs us jobs, weakens our economic competitiveness, and leaves us at a geopolitical disadvantage. Our bill takes steps that are long overdue to reverse our damaging foreign dependence and position ourselves to compete in growth industries like electric vehicles and energy storage.”

ARPN will keep tabs on this and other relevant bills as they move through Congress, so stay tuned for updates.