To amend the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands to make that Act applicable to hardrock minerals.
Latest action · Sep 17, 2026 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 669.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJun 10, 2025
- Passed HouseDec 15, 2025
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
This bill specifies that all federally acquired lands are eligible to be considered for hardrock mineral leasing under the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands (MLAAL). The bill defines the term hardrock mineral to (1) include deposits of minerals found in sedimentary or other rocks, base metals, precious metals, industrial minerals, and precious and semi-precious gemstones; and (2) exclude deposits of coal, oil, oil shale, gas, sodium, potassium, sulfur, or mineral materials subject to disposition under the Materials Act of 1947.
By way of background, hardrock minerals are not currently listed under the MLAAL as deposits subject to a lease, while mineral resources such as coal, phosphate, oil, gas, gilsonite, and sulfur are listed. As a result, federal lands may be leased for mining hardrock minerals only if the federal lands were acquired under a statute, such as the Weeks Act, that specifically authorizes the land to be used for hardrock mineral leasing.
Cosponsors 2
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jun 10, 2025 to Jun 24, 2025; 1 is an original cosponsor, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-TX | Nathaniel Moran | Original | Jun 10, 2025 |
| R-NC | Pat Harrigan | Jun 24, 2025 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Natural Resources Committee | Referred Jun 10, 2025Discharged Sep 17, 2025Markup Sep 17, 2025Reported Oct 31, 2025 |
| Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee | Referred Jul 2, 2025Hearings Sep 3, 2025 | |
| Senate | Energy and Natural Resources Committee | Referred Dec 16, 2025Markup Jun 10, 2026Reported Sep 17, 2026 |
| Public Lands, Forests, and Mining Subcommittee | Hearings Feb 12, 2026 |
Actions 19
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Sep 17, 2026Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Lee without amendment. Without written report.
- Sep 17, 2026Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 669.
- Jun 10, 2026Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
- Feb 12, 2026Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 119-305.
- Dec 16, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
- Dec 15, 2025Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H5884-5885)
- Dec 15, 2025Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H5884)
- Dec 15, 2025Mr. Stauber moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Dec 15, 2025DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 3872.
- Dec 15, 2025Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Oct 31, 2025Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 119-357.
- Oct 31, 2025Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 309.
- Sep 17, 2025Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Discharged
- Sep 17, 2025Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Sep 17, 2025Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Unanimous Consent.
- Sep 3, 2025Subcommittee Hearings Held
- Jul 2, 2025Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
- Jun 10, 2025Introduced in House
- Jun 10, 2025Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H5884, H5885Text printed H5884 | Pablo José Hernández D-PR, Pat Fallon R-TX, Pete Stauber R-MN | Dec 15, 2025 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Sep 2, 2026H.R. 3872, an act to amend the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands to make that act applicable to hardrock mineralsAs ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on June 10, 2026
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 171, no. 99, June 10, 2025, page H2615.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| S. Hrg. 119-305 | PENDING LEGISLATION620 pages | Energy and Natural Resources Committee | Feb 12, 2026 |
Titles 4
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands to make that Act applicable to hardrock minerals.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- MERICA Act of 2025
- Mineral Extraction for Renewable Industry and Critical Applications Act of 2025
- Official Title from EH (Engrossed in House) bill text
- To amend the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands to make that Act applicable to hardrock minerals.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Energy.
Text 5
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Sep 17, 2026Reported to Senate
- Dec 16, 2025Referred in Senate
- Dec 15, 2025Engrossed in House
- Oct 31, 2025Reported in House
- Jun 10, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
