[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7126 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7126
To establish a Strategic Resilience Reserve of the United States, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 15, 2026
Mr. Wittman (for himself and Mr. Moolenaar) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in
addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee
concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a Strategic Resilience Reserve of the United States, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Securing Essential
and Critical U.S. Resources and Elements Minerals Act of 2026'' or the
``SECURE Minerals Act of 2026''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
TITLE I--ESTABLISHMENT AND BOARD OF GOVERNORS
Sec. 101. Establishment.
Sec. 102. Board of governors.
TITLE II--DUTIES AND AUTHORITIES OF THE RESERVE
Sec. 201. General authorities.
Sec. 202. Identification of eligible critical minerals and materials.
Sec. 203. Data collection.
Sec. 204. Critical mineral and material market risk and vulnerability
assessment.
Sec. 205. Production standards.
Sec. 206. Financing and acquisition of critical minerals or materials.
Sec. 207. Sale of critical minerals or materials.
TITLE III--ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Sec. 301. Corporate powers.
Sec. 302. Records and accounts.
TITLE IV--OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Sec. 401. Risk and audit committees.
Sec. 402. Annual audit and comptroller review.
Sec. 403. Reporting and transparency.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) critical minerals and materials are essential to the
ongoing economic and national security of the United States,
playing a vital role in the manufacturing, transportation,
medical, technology, defense, and energy sectors;
(2) the global demand for critical minerals and materials
has been rapidly increasing due to advancements in technology,
whether defense, dual-use, or commercial, and the increasing
adoption of renewable energy sources and next-generation
automotive systems, all of which rely heavily on critical
minerals and materials for the production of batteries, solar
panels, wind turbines, high-speed computing, advanced magnetic
systems, and other high-tech applications;
(3) the People's Republic of China--
(A) currently controls a significant portion of the
global supply chain for critical minerals and materials
through extensive mining, integrated midstream
operations, significant domestic subsidies and
incentives, and strategic investments in resource-rich
countries, dominating the global market infrastructure
for critical minerals and materials and enhancing the
ability of the People's Republic of China to manipulate
pricing to the detriment of competitors;
(B) centrally controls its dominant market share
across multiple critical mineral vertical markets,
preventing fair competition and hindering the ability
of United States firms and firms in partner countries
to innovate and scale production;
(C) predatorily leverages its position as sponsor
or consumer, as applicable, over mining projects
globally, resulting in a dearth of feedstocks to the
great detriment of downstream industries, regions, and
countries, including the United States;
(D) the integrated operations of which are
subservient to the Chinese state, is calibrated to
weaponize its influence over prices and volumes in the
contest for access to critical minerals and materials,
as well as the end-use components and applications
produced from critical minerals and materials; and
(E) acts to undercut efforts in the United States
and partner countries to develop alternative sources of
supply;
(4) producers of critical minerals and materials in the
United States often face artificially low prices set by supply
chains controlled by the People's Republic of China,
discouraging private investment in domestic extraction and
processing;
(5) the lack of transparent, competitive, and market-driven
pricing mechanisms for critical minerals and materials outside
of the People's Republic of China compounds market problems,
creating systemic risk and limiting the viability of an
independent supply chain for critical minerals and materials in
the United States;
(6) the United States is heavily reliant on imports for
many of the most critical minerals and materials, including
rare earth elements, making the United States vulnerable to
supply disruptions, geopolitical tensions, and economic
manipulation by countries that dominate the market,
specifically the People's Republic of China;
(7) the vulnerabilities to the United States defense
industrial base posed by reliance on imports of critical
minerals and materials are significant, and given the long lead
times for investments in both mining and processing of critical
minerals, domestic critical minerals production projects are
particularly susceptible to price shocks induced by the
People's Republic of China, which can depress critical mineral
prices for an extended period;
(8) increasing domestic primary feedstock production,
processing, conversion, recycling, reuse, and repurposing to
advanced materials and products, as well as increasing
alternative market supply in partner countries, are imperative
to reduce the impact of market manipulation by foreign state
actors, such as the People's Republic of China;
(9) the United States must ensure that a stable and secure
supply chain of essential resources is available to our
domestic innovation and manufacturing ecosystems;
(10) sustainable and responsible corporate behavior in the
direct operations of companies and across their global value
chains is important to ensuring a resilient domestic critical
minerals supply;
(11) investments in domestic extraction and processing
infrastructure, as well as reuse, repurposing, and recycling,
are necessary to build a resilient and diversified supply chain
for critical minerals and materials, supporting the economic
growth and national security interests of the United States;
and
(12) government support to develop and ensure the integrity
of Western and partner country markets for critical minerals
and materials as a countermeasure against the anti-competitive
tactics of the People's Republic of China and the supply chain
co-collaborators of the People's Republic of China will fill
the most acute strategic gap, which cannot be otherwise
achieved by private industry participants acting alone.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and
Forestry of the Senate;
(B) the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives;
(C) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate;
(D) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of
Representatives;
(E) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs of the Senate;
(F) the Committee on Financial Services of the
House of Representatives;
(G) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate;
(H) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the
House of Representatives;
(I) the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
of the Senate;
(J) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House
of Representatives;
(K) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate; and
(L) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives.
(2) Authorized intermediary.--The term ``authorized
intermediary'' means an entity that--
(A) is a private entity;
(B) has expertise in more than 1 critical mineral
or material;
(C) has expertise in commodities trading, market
making, capital management, or finance;
(D) does not have any management influenced by a
foreign entity of concern or a citizen of a covered
country, including any entities affiliated with the
private entity or the ownership of the private entity;
(E) is not owned, controlled, directed, financed,
or otherwise influenced, directly or indirectly, in
whole or in any part greater than 25 percent, by a
foreign entity of concern, a citizen of a covered
country, or the government of a covered country; and
(F) has been approved to be an authorized
intermediary by the Board.
(3) Board.--The term ``Board'' means the board of governors
of the Reserve established by section 102(a).
(4) Chairperson.--The term ``Chairperson'' means the
Chairperson of the Board.
(5) Covered country.--The term ``covered country'' means a
country that--
(A) is a covered nation (as defined in section
4872(f) of title 10, United States Code); or
(B) the Secretary of Energy, in consultation with
the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, and
the Director of National Intelligence, determines to be
engaged in conduct that is detrimental to the national
security or foreign policy of the United States.
(6) Critical mineral or material.--The term ``critical
mineral or material'' means mineral or material included in the
list of eligible critical minerals and materials established by
the Reserve under section 202(a).
(7) Dependence rate.--The term ``dependence rate'' means
the percentage of domestic end-use consumption of a critical
mineral or material that is supplied by production by a foreign
entity of concern or in a covered country, in aggregate.
(8) Foreign entity of concern.--The term ``foreign entity
of concern'' means a foreign entity that--
(A) meets the requirements described in
subparagraphs (A), (B), (D), or (E) of section 10638(3)
of the Research and Development, Competition, and
Innovation Act (42 U.S.C. 19237(3)); or
(B)(i) is owned, controlled, directed, financed, or
otherwise influenced, directly or indirectly, in whole
or in any part greater than 25 percent, by the
government of a foreign country that is a covered
country; or
(ii) is otherwise subject to the jurisdiction or
direction of a government of a covered country.
(9) Partner country.--The term ``partner country'' means--
(A) a member country of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization;
(B) a country that has been designated as a major
non-NATO ally under section 517 of the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2321k); or
(C) a foreign country, including any market or any
producer in a foreign country--
(i) with which the United States has
entered into a mutual defense treaty or other
mutual defense agreement, but not including
Venezuela;
(ii) that is recognized by the Secretary of
State and the Secretary of Defense as a
strategic partner due to an established
bilateral agreement that emphasizes mutual
interests in security, defense, and critical
mineral supply chains, including countries
designated under United States strategic
frameworks and agreements;
(iii) with which the United States has
entered into a comprehensive economic and trade
agreement that includes provisions for the
collaboration on critical mineral resources and
to safeguard supply chains critical to national
security and economic stability;
(iv) with which the United States
Geological Survey has in effect a memorandum of
understanding concerning scientific and
technical cooperation in earth sciences, unless
that country is a covered country; or
(v) with which the Department of State, the
United States International Development Finance
Corporation, the Export-Import Bank of the
United States, or the United States Trade and
Development Agency is working to advance an
active critical mineral project.
(10) Production rate.--The term ``production rate'' means
the percentage of domestic end-use consumption of a critical
mineral or material that is supplied by domestic and partner
country production in aggregate.
(11) Purposes of the reserve.--The term ``purposes of the
Reserve'' means the purposes of the Reserve described in
section 101(b).
(12) Recycle.--The term ``recycle'' means an action or
process to convert a critical mineral or material contained
within a finished or semi-finished product into a form suitable
for repurposing or reuse of the critical mineral or material.
(13) Repurpose.--The term ``repurpose'' means any operation
that results, in whole or in part, in a critical mineral or
material being used for a different purpose or application than
the purpose or application for which the critical mineral or
material, or the product into which the critical mineral or
material is manufactured into, was originally intended.
(14) Reserve.--The term ``Reserve'' means the Strategic
Resilience Reserve Corporation of the United States established
by section 101(a)(1).
(15) Reuse.--The term ``reuse'' means the complete or
partial direct reuse of a critical mineral or material after
use for the original purposes for which the critical mineral or
material was intended.
(16) Vice-chairperson.--The term ``Vice-chairperson'' means
the Vice-chairperson of the Board.
TITLE I--ESTABLISHMENT AND BOARD OF GOVERNORS
SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT.
(a) Entity Formation.--
(1) In general.--There is established a wholly owned
government corporation, to be known as the ``Strategic
Resilience Reserve Corporation of the United States''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 9101(3) of title 31,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(Q) the Strategic Resilience Reserve Corporation
of the United States.''.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of the Reserve are--
(1) to support a free, fair, and competitive market for
critical minerals and materials in which domestic and partner
country producers and processors can compete and innovate;
(2) to support domestic and partner country production,
extraction, processing, refining, reuse, repurposing, and
recycling of, and capabilities and infrastructure with respect
to, critical minerals and materials;
(3) to support and protect stable and economically
sustainable prices of critical minerals and materials,
including price levels consistent with competitive market
economies and reliable supply;
(4) to support responsible production of critical minerals
and materials with respect to standards for transparency,
environmental, and labor practices, and to ensure a competitive
market for producers meeting those standards;
(5) to assist in maintaining balanced and adequate supplies
of critical minerals and materials to the United States, as
determined by the Board;
(6) to the maximum extent practicable, to ensure that, at
each stage of the supply chain--
(A) the production rate of each critical mineral or
material is equal to or greater than a percentage
determined to be reasonable by the Board, in
coordination with appropriate Federal agencies, but not
less than 25 percent; and
(B) the dependence rate for each critical mineral
or material is equal to or less than a percentage
determined to be reasonable by the Board, in
coordination with appropriate Federal agencies, but not
less than 75 percent;
(7) to prioritize--
(A) domestic projects and supply chains, including
processing capacity, for critical minerals and
materials;
(B) projects that--