On the recordJuly 12, 2012
The bill we are considering today isn't about ensuring our supply of ``strategic and critical minerals.'' This bill is about deregulating the mining industry and the pipeline industry. It's misnamed. It should be renamed the Koch Brothers Mining and Pipeline Deregulatory Act of 2012. It's consistent with everything that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have been about during this 112th Congress. It's been about deregulation; it's been about tax breaks for the wealthy; and it's been about cutting the ability of the government to do what it needs to do. While they're cutting the ability of the Federal agencies to assess the propriety of these kinds of activities--mining and gas line production--while they are cutting the ability to do that, they are reducing the time within which the remaining assets of the various agencies have to do the work that they are supposed to do. I'll tell you, it's important that we assess the environmental impact of various proposals on our environment, but my colleagues on the other side don't care about the environment. Almost a year ago, the Natural Resources Committee produced H.R. 2011, the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Policy Act, a bipartisan bill that actually did address supply vulnerabilities for truly strategic and critical minerals policy. I was proud to work with Ranking Member Markey and Chairman Hastings to coauthor that legislation, and it was passed unanimously by their committee. That bill, H.R.…
