National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act of 2012
Floor Speech
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Mr. GOSAR. Madam Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 4402.
My home State of Arizona is known for the five Cs: cattle, cotton, citrus, climate, and, lastly, copper. People have been digging in Arizona for precious metals like copper for centuries. In the 1850s, nearly one in every four people in Arizona were miners. Without a doubt, mining fueled the growth that makes Arizona the State it is today.
Today, the Arizona mining industry is alive, but it is not what it used to be.
A wide array of other critical minerals such as copper, coal, uranium, lime, and potash are mined throughout my district. These projects employ hundreds of my constituents with high-paying jobs, jobs that pay over $50,000 to $60,000 a year plus benefits. In rural Arizona, those types of jobs are few and far between--in fact, they are few and far between across this country.
But there is some potential, and there's so much more. As you can see from the graphic, rare Earth and other critical minerals have been discovered throughout rural Arizona and are suitable for development. These are minerals our country badly needs to meet the demands for production of everyday items like cell phones, computers, batteries, and cars.
So what is the holdup?
As I travel throughout rural Arizona talking with companies that do business throughout my State, the message is clear. The length, the complexity, the uncertainty of the permitting process is stymieing the development of and discouraging investors from committing to U.S. mining.
If you do not believe this, how about a real life example? I will give you an example right out of rural Arizona. Down here in Safford, in the southeastern part of my district, is the home of the newest mine in North America. It took 13 years for all the necessary permitting. Imagine that. Time is money.
I was the first cosponsor of H.R. 4402 because the government has to work more efficiently. This legislation streamlines the process and sets benchmarks while ensuring continued environmental protection.
Let me be clear. Despite what the opposition says, this bill does not exempt the industry from complying with environmental regulations. It tackles the problems on the government approval process.
Let's restore some sanity into the permitting process.
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Mr. GOSAR. If the current bureaucratic gridlock was in place 150 years ago, I do not believe Arizona could exist as it does today. Copper would not be one of our five founding Cs.
Let's restore some sanity to the permitting process and get American miners back to work. Vote ``yes'' on the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act. Our economy deserves and depends on it.
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