“To require the Secretary of Energy to provide technology grants to strengthen domestic mining education, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section establishes a competitive grant program, administered by the Secretary of Energy in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior (acting through the Director of the United States Geological Survey), to award not more than 10 grants each fiscal year to mining schools (i.e., accredited mining, metallurgical, geological, or mineral engineering programs at institutions of higher education, including Tribal colleges or universities, or geology or engineering programs at four-year public institutions of higher education in states with at least $2 billion in combined 2021 gross domestic product from mining except oil and gas and support activities for mining, per the Bureau of Economic Analysis). Grants must be awarded, to the maximum extent practicable with geographic diversity among recipients, by not later than 180 days after the fiscal year begins or full-year appropriations for the Department of Energy are enacted (whichever is later); the Secretary must consider recommendations from the Mining Professional Development Advisory Board (established under subsection (d)), provide a public statement justifying any rejection of those recommendations, and prioritize region-specific geologic expertise. Grant recipients must use funds to recruit students and enhance programs related to mining and mineral technologies (e.g., critical mineral exploration and refining, reclamation practices, acid mine drainage mitigation, and supply chain analysis).
This section authorizes no additional funds to carry out the Act and makes activities authorized by the Act subject to the availability of appropriations made in advance for such purposes.