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DEQ-backed bill would raise hard‑rock mining fees to fund reclamation; industry largely supports phased increases
Summary
House Bill 69 would update mining permit and annual fees that have not been raised in decades and direct them into a new permitting account to help DEQ implement the Metal Mine Reclamation Act. Industry groups and timberland owners testified they negotiated tiering and a multi‑year phase‑in.
Representative Steve Gist introduced House Bill 69, a DEQ‑sponsored bill to raise and modernize hard‑rock mining fees and redirect them into a new hard‑rock mining permitting program account to support implementation of the Metal Mine Reclamation Act (MMRA).
Dan Walsh, administrator for DEQ's Air, Energy and Mining Division, told the committee DEQ currently spends roughly $1.25 million in natural resource operations plus up to $461,000 of general fund to implement MMRA requirements. He said mining fees have averaged about $12,000 per year and have not been updated since 2001. HB 69 would create permit application fees and annual operating fees for operating permits, exploration licenses and small exclusion statements, and would allow fees to be used directly for MMRA implementation rather than being routed to the Environmental Rehabilitation and Response account.
Industry representatives, including Matt Vincent of the Montana Mining Association and Mark Thompson of Montana Resources, testified in support after months of negotiation with DEQ. Vincent said the bill establishes tiers based on bonded disturbance and phases annual increases over four years to allow operators to plan. "We did a very thorough evaluation... we think that this represents a fair shake," Vincent said.
Forest and landowner representatives including Julia Altimus (Montana Wood Products Association) and Jason Callahan (Green Diamond Resource Company) also testified that earlier, larger proposals would have been difficult to absorb but that DEQ had worked with stakeholders to adjust tiers and phase‑in increases; Callahan praised the move to base fees on bonded disturbance rather than permitted area.
Committee members asked staff about exemptions for very small operations, how fees would be applied to rock products operations and whether phased increases would be administratively feasible. DEQ said the new account would relieve pressure on the general fund and provide predictable funding for permitting and oversight.
The hearing closed after questions; proponents emphasized the collaborative development of the bill and that the fee schedule would bring Montana broadly in line with peer states.
Status: hearing closed; sponsor recommended do‑pass.
