After passing a controversial budget bill on Monday, U.S. Congress had a quiet week, with only a handful of bills progressing through either chamber.
Only one of the four other bills Congress passed this week proposes any new government policies: the Critical Mineral Dominance Act, which the House voted to pass Wednesday, promotes the expansion of mineral harvesting on federal land.
The bill requires the Department of the Interior to provide a report on how much the U.S. relies on foreign mineral imports and to expedite approvals for permits or other applications relating to domestic mining projects on federal land.
The bill also requires the department to identify all federal lands where hardrock mineral mining — which includes precious metals, gems and other minerals, but not coal, oil, sulfur or gas — is possible and to review all existing regulations for those that “impose an undue burden” on potential domestic mining operations.
The House voted 224-195 in favor of the bill, with all but 10 Democrats in opposition. Hawai‘i reps Ed Case and Jill Tokuda were among those voting against the measure.
The other three bills Congress passed this week simply authorized President Donald Trump to issue the Medal of Honor to three U.S. Armed Forces veterans.
Two of those measures would honor Vietnam War veterans. One would grant the award posthumously to Marine John Ripley, who previously was awarded the Navy Cross for demolishing a bridge during the war, while the other would honor James Capers Jr. for saving his unit from an ambush in 1967.
The third bill would honor Afghanistan Army vet Nicholas Dockery for his actions in 2012, where he rescued an unconscious soldier while under fire.
These bills passed with no objections.
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