House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Chairman Pete Stauber (R-Minn.) testified before the House Committee on Rules in support of H.J. Res. 140, a resolution that would disapprove Public Land Order 7917 under the Congressional Review Act.
In his prepared remarks, Stauber addressed concerns about U.S. access to critical minerals and criticized recent actions by the Biden Administration regarding mineral development on public lands.
Stauber said, “The data is clear – demand for critical minerals is projected to skyrocket in the coming years, and we must be ready to meet the need. According to a recent study from S&P Global, global copper demand alone is projected to increase 50 percent by 2040, driven by the growing needs of artificial intelligence, defense, and manufacturing. This surge could cause a shortfall of up to 10 million metric tons of copper without a meaningful expansion in supply.”
He continued, “In other words, we need to mine more, and we should have started yesterday.”
Stauber pointed out U.S. reliance on foreign sources for minerals: “Our critical mineral dependency plays right into the hands of our adversaries. Most notably, China controls approximately 60% of global critical mineral production, 90% of processing, and 75% of manufacturing. We’ve repeatedly seen the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) implement mineral export restrictions and leverage its stranglehold over critical and rare earth minerals as a bargaining chip in trade negotiations.”
According to Stauber, decisions made during the Biden Administration have restricted mineral development across large areas: “Unfortunately, under the Biden Administration, the United States moved in the opposite direction, reversing project approvals and restricting mineral development on millions of acres of public lands.”
H.J. Res. 140 seeks to reverse Public Land Order (PLO) 7917 finalized during this administration: “H.J. Res. 140 reverses a dangerous Public Land Order... The PLO withdrew 225,504 acres—that’s nearly a quarter of a million acres—in the Superior National Forest from mineral development for 20 years... The Biden Administration even went so far as to state that its purpose in issuing the withdrawal was to prevent mineral and geothermal exploration and development.” Stauber also referenced former Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland’s congressional testimony stating she did not believe there were any critical minerals present when she signed PLO 7917.
Stauber highlighted that this area includes significant domestic reserves: “This withdrawal area includes the Duluth Complex—the largest untapped copper-nickel find in the entire world... The Duluth Complex contains one-third of our country’s copper reserves, 95% of our nickel reserves, 88% of our cobalt reserves, and 75% of our other platinum-group resources.”
He further argued that procedural requirements were not met when PLO 7917 was implemented: “Under the Federal Lands Policy and Management Act, the Department of the Interior is required to notify Congress... The Biden Administration failed to properly transmit PLO 7917 to Congress when it was finalized in January 2023.”
On broader impacts beyond mining metals like copper or nickel he said: “This area is also home to helium... Recent discoveries in the area have found one of the largest and most concentrated helium deposits in the entire world... But when a developer tried to nominate acreage for a BLM lease sale, their request was denied because of the mineral withdrawal.”
Stauber concluded with an appeal for action: “It is abundantly clear Congress must act to overturn PLO 7917 to secure our mineral security and allow the United States to compete in the 21st Century... I urge the Committee to adopt an appropriate rule so we can bring this resolution to the floor.”
