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Committee backs bill to stabilize abandoned‑mine cleanup fund, create advisory committee
Summary
A Senate committee voted to send House Bill 226 to the floor with a due-pass recommendation. The bill would redirect a larger share of the mine license tax to the abandoned mine lands fund, create an advisory committee, allow voluntary contributions and add reporting requirements.
A Senate committee voted to send House Bill 226 to the floor with a due-pass recommendation after sponsors and industry representatives described the bill as a measure to stabilize funding for cleanup of abandoned mines.
Senator Mark Harris, presenting HB 226, said the abandoned mine lands fund was created to assist cleanup of mines abandoned generations ago and is funded by a portion of the mine license tax, a production tax on ore. He told the committee the fund’s revenue is cyclical because mine production fluctuates and that the fund has been depleted during a recent decade-long downcycle in mineral production.
Harris said HB 226 would redirect a higher percentage of the mine license tax to the abandoned mine lands fund, allow voluntary contributions to the fund, require that a majority of funds be spent on eligible abandoned mines, create a public advisory committee, and add transparency and annual reporting requirements for the department that administers the fund.
Ben Davenport, executive vice president of the Idaho Mining Association, told the committee the fund was created in 1994 after hoped-for federal funding did not materialize for hard-rock abandoned-mine cleanup. He said the industry asked for a portion of the mine license tax in a 1999 measure and that the current bill aims to stabilize that stream so cleanup can continue in down cycles.
Davenport said industry members are willing to work with the department to improve the regulatory program but do not want one-time cleanup funds used for regulatory enforcement. Senator Taylor asked whether voluntary contributions would function like mitigation payments; Davenport said voluntary contributions are not a substitute for permit-required mitigation but could be structured to align with federal mitigation requirements if the federal government allows.
Senator Konowitz moved to send HB 226 to the floor with a due-pass recommendation; the motion was seconded, carried on a voice vote, and the bill will proceed to the Senate floor.
