Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Critical Minerals topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Utah committee backs resolution asking industry, state groups to craft critical-minerals strategy
Summary
The House Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Committee on March 4 unanimously recommended SJR 11, a resolution asking three Utah organizations to convene a working group to study the state's critical-mineral resources and return recommendations to the Legislature.
Senator Millner told the House Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Standing Committee on March 4 that Utah holds deposits on the federal critical-minerals list and needs a statewide strategy to develop them.
The resolution, SJR 11, calls on the Utah Mining Association, a federal Economic Development Administration grantee (referred to in testimony as “47 gs”) and the World Trade Center to form a study group and come back to the Legislature with recommendations on how the state can responsibly tap critical minerals. Senator Millner said, “we're very dependent on certain critical minerals, not only for national defense, but for our electronics, for just our general way of life in this country.”
The measure does not fund the study or create a legislative task force; it asks existing organizations to coordinate and return findings. Millner said the resolution is meant to avoid “lots of independent work streams” and to show “Utah works together to make these things happen.” The sponsor framed the resolution as a step toward a state-level strategy in response to global supply risks, noting that “we're 100% dependent on imports for 16 of those minerals from China,” and that Utah may have deposits for roughly 40 of the 50 federal critical minerals.
Public commenters from industry supported the resolution. Brian Summers, president of the Utah Mining Association, told the committee the association “believe[s] that Utah is very well positioned to lead the national conversation,” and thanked Senator Millner for initiating the request to produce a unified strategy. Josh Brown of the Utah Manufacturers Association also urged support, calling the resolution “a good opportunity” to reduce U.S. dependency on foreign processing.
Representative Bennion attempted a verbal amendment to add language about “primary and secondary processing methodologies,” then offered a substitute amendment to add a line referencing stewardship of state lands; the committee voted the substitute down. After debate the committee voted to recommend SJR 11 favorably; the motion passed unanimously.
Why it matters: committee members and industry witnesses said the resolution could help align state, industry and academic efforts to identify where critical minerals exist in Utah and how to process them to reduce reliance on foreign supply chains. The resolution does not allocate state funding or change permitting or land management law; it requests a coordinated study and a return to the Legislature.
Votes at a glance: The committee recorded a motion to recommend SJR 11 out of committee (mover: Representative Bullwander). The committee approved a favorable recommendation by voice vote; no roll-call vote was recorded in the transcript.
The resolution will be reported out of committee to the full House for further action.
