Rare Earths and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010
Latest action. Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Rare Earths and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010 - Title I: Rare Earth Materials - (Sec. 101) Establishes in the Department of Energy (DOE) a research, development, and commercial application program to assure the long-term, secure, and sustainable supply of specified rare earth materials to satisfy the national security, economic well-being, and industrial production needs of the United States.
Directs the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) to: (1) support new or significantly improved processes and technologies (as compared to those currently in use in the rare earth materials industry); (2) encourage multidisciplinary collaborations and opportunities for students at institutions of higher education; (3) collaborate with relevant agencies of foreign countries with interests relating to rare earth materials; and (4) submit an implementation plan to Congress.
Requires the Secretary to offer to contract with the National Academy of Sciences for an assessment of the program after it has been in operation for four years.
(Sec. 102) Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to authorize the Secretary through FY 2015, only to the extent provided in advance in a subsequent appropriations Act, to make loan guarantee commitments for the commercial application of new or significantly improved technologies for specified categories of projects, including: (1) separation and recovery of rare earth materials from ores or other sources; (2) preparation of rare earth materials in oxide, metal, alloy, or other forms needed for national security, economic well-being, or industrial production purposes; and (3) application of rare earth materials in the production of improved magnets, batteries, refrigeration systems, optical systems, electronics, and catalysis, among other uses.
Directs the Secretary to cooperate with appropriate private sector participants to achieve a complete rare earth materials production capability in the United States within five years after enactment of this Act.
Prohibits the Secretary from awarding a loan guarantee for a project unless the project's proponent provides assurances that the loan or guarantee shall be used to support the separation, recovery, preparation, or manufacturing of rare earth materials in the United States for customers within the United States, unless insufficient domestic demand for such materials results in excess capacity.
The summary continues for 2 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed House amended" stage on September 29, 2010. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on September 29, 2010: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 111th Congress (2009-10), 383 of the 10,778 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.6 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Kathleen Dahlkemper (D-PA) introduced it on September 22, 2010, and 6 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 4 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on September 22, 2010, 5832 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5825 days ago, on September 29, 2010.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 111th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2011 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers