Dear Senator _____________ 
I would appreciate it if you would vote no on bill HR2262. I feel it would do away with small mining companies because no corporation will invest huge sums of money to get a permit that is only going to last for ten (10) years and then have to be evaluated again with the prospect that the rules and regulations on small mines has changed and permit will be denied.
I strongly oppose HR 2262 and request that you vote against its passage.

Respectfully_______________
 
 

The Honorable Senator _________

Dear Senator _____________ it appears Congressman Rahall (D WV) and co-sponsors of HR 2262 are in the pockets of huge coal mining corporations and petroleum cartels. He is currently guiding his H.R. 2262, The Hard rock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2007 through congress. 
This act if passed will place our nation’s natural resources that are located on federal lands, under the partial jurisdiction of local governments as well as allow local governments to petition for the withdrawal of mineral rights under those lands. These are our lands, not the city, state or county’s and as such should be managed entirely by the United States Federal Government. 
This bill will allow any person or group to bring a lawsuit against exploration or mining activities on federal lands upon the report of any allegation of non-compliance with federal or state statutes. This will lead to environmental groups filing endless legal actions causing closures, elevated costs and years of legal wrangling before the possible beginning of production. 
In addition this bill applies an eight percent royalty to the sales of locatable minerals mined from federal lands. This eight percent royalty would essentially steal the profit a prospector or small miner would receive for the sale of his discovery to a larger mining company. A two to four percent royalty is common recompense to the discoverer. 
These requirements and other obstructionist provisions within HR 2262 will financially harm all domestic mining companies operating on federal lands. It will no longer be feasible to attempt to explore or operate on federal lands so most mining companies will move to new projects located off shore. We witnessed other industries do the same due to over regulation. “Mom and Pop” operations will all close due to the tremendous costs associated in with the requirements of this bill. That will possibly leave only the largest international mining corporations able to mine on federal lands in the U.S.
This act will be devastating to many minority groups, especially Hispanic and Native Americans. In the west many mines and rock quarries have a minority employee base of forty to eighty percent. Without continued mining activity these towns will die and the people will suffer. 
It should be noted that uranium is a locatable mineral as is gold, silver and copper. Over eighty percent of all uranium mined in the U.S. has or continues to come from mines located on federal lands. Large exploration programs are ongoing across the west in an attempt to identify new reserves or uranium bearing ore deposits. Most of these efforts will be abandoned by provisions contained in this bill.
Currently three new Nuclear Power Plants are due to receive construction permits next year and the federal government is allocating over 50 million dollars to promote new nuclear power plans. We are currently in a debate as a nation as to the potential of generating up to 60% of our electricity by nuclear power by 2040. 
It appears that if Congressman Rahall and the co-sponsors of HR2262 can cause the implementation of these draconian laws, they will be able with a single act, keep the huge petroleum, coal and oil shale interests in control of our nation’s energy future. 
This appears to be a huge power play, hidden behind environmental and revenue concerns, for the heart and soul of our nations power production health. This massive protectionist effort by Rahall on the part of coal and oil interests to retain the status quo must be stopped.
H.R. 2262 is a bad bill. If this bill passes we will be completely dependent on other countries for uranium and other metals and be locked into using oil and coal for electric generation. We must learn from our current oil and fuel crisis that domestic production is preferable to reliance on foreign sources. 
I strongly oppose HR 2262 and request that you vote against its passage.

Sincerely,___________________

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