Committee backs bill to direct larger share of mine-license tax to abandoned-mine cleanup

The Idaho House Resources and Conservation Committee voted to send House Bill 226 to the full House with a "do pass" recommendation after lawmakers and industry witnesses said the state’s Abandoned Mine Lands Fund has been depleted by ongoing operating costs and volatile mining revenues.

Representative Dustin Manwaring, R-Pocatello, told the committee the bill would redirect a higher percentage of the state mine license tax into the Abandoned Mine Lands Fund, allow voluntary contributions to that fund, require that a majority of fund expenditures go to eligible abandoned-mine projects rather than management or personnel costs, and create a public advisory committee to help set priorities.

The funding change is intended to stabilize the fund so money is available to remediate historic mine sites, which witnesses said pose public-health and safety risks in some areas of Idaho. Benjamin Davenport, executive vice president of the Idaho Mining Association, said the fund was created to address…