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Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025

Floor Speech

Date: Sept. 2, 2026
Location: Washington, DC

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Mr. MOORE of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in favor of the Protecting Domestic Mining Act.

Mr. Speaker, I also rise to give the ranking member, the gentleman from northern California, another opportunity to agree with a Utahn today.

I am very proud to co-lead this legislation, including this bill, with Representative Shreve and sincerely thank Chairman Westerman for his leadership on this issue.

This committee is about getting things done. This committee is about being productive, and it is an honor to have been on this committee and to continue to be associated with it.

I am glad to see this very important bill progress through our Chamber. It is no question that the American domestic mining industry is critical to our national security and our energy dominance.

In Utah alone, mining supports over 43,000 jobs and contributes over $5 billion to our State GDP annually. Across the country, those numbers jump to nearly 600,000 jobs and over $375 billion to our GDP.

Growth in this sector has historically been difficult. It takes an average of 19 years for a new mine to go through the permitting process. These delays unnecessarily burden our growing supply chain demands and create further reliance on Chinese mineral production.

The FAST-41 Program was a move in the right direction to ensure more efficient and predictable timelines when working with the Federal Government to open new mines. The increased coordination and cross- agency engagement are exactly the kind of improvements that our government needs.

Unfortunately, the Biden administration decided that only certain types of mines should be eligible for FAST-41. This bill corrects that decision and protects the eligibility of all hardrock mines.

We often speak about the importance of supporting domestic production and the risks associated with overreliance on countries that want to see us fail. We have a real opportunity to change our programs, to support domestic industry, promote American energy and national security, and fulfill our responsibility to make government work better for the people.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this bill.

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