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Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson today voted for legislation to streamline domestic mineral exploration and production, ensuring the availability of domestic minerals and mineral materials that are essential for national security, technological innovation, and economic growth.  H.R. 761, the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act, would streamline the permitting process for mineral exploration and development project. 

“Permitting delays are a huge problem in this country.  It takes longer to permit a hard rock mine on federal land here than in any of the other 25 mineral producing countries, and we are increasingly dependent on other countries to produce minerals that we need for national security and other critical purposes,” said Simpson.  “H.R. 761 takes a number of steps to eliminate unnecessary and duplicative steps in the permitting process so that we are no longer subject to the legal and political whims of other nations for strategic minerals.  I’m pleased the House has taken up this important legislation.”

Simpson, who chairs the House Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, is a cosponsor of H.R. 761, which passed the House today by a vote of 246-178.