Current Controversy
The Democratic control of Congress from 2007-2011 brought a new chair to the resources committee: Rep. Richard Pombo (R, California) lost the 2006 election and was replaced by Nick Rahall from West Virginia, who has been a strong critic of the mining industry.
However others, such as Rep. Steve Pearce (R-New Mexico), ranking Republican on the minerals subcommittee and Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) believe that the 2001 Surface Management regulations address modern day concerns and that implementing further restrictions on the industry or imposing royalties would force even more of the domestic mining industry out of the country. As stated by Congressman Pearce, "Why would we as a nation want to send our metals and uranium mining off shore, then wind up reliant on foreign countries for the raw materials we need for our industries and new power plants. We need to learn from past mistakes such as our reliance on the middle east for our petroleum products."
Read more about this topic: General Mining Act Of 1872
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