The House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill to bolster federal cooperation with allies to produce critical minerals and reduce reliance on China, which has used its dominant position as leverage against the West.
The legislation, which passed by voice vote, would direct the United States to work with allies and partners to secure critical mineral supply chains and promote domestic production.
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The bill, known as the Developing Overseas Mineral Investments and New Allied Networks for Critical Energies Act and written by Reps. Young Kim (R-CA) and Ami Bera (D-CA), passed by voice vote.
“Critical minerals are embedded into our daily lives,” Kim told the Washington Examiner.
The minerals are essential for developing technology-based applications in the energy and defense sectors, plus everyday items such as smartphones, tablets, and microwaves.
But the U.S. has relied on China for critical minerals for years, posing a national security risk.
The bill would establish a Bureau of Energy Security and Diplomacy in the State Department to focus on international energy, critical minerals, and supply chain strategy. It would also encourage the creation of a special adviser to the president for critical minerals and supply chain to oversee the whole-of-government approach.
The establishment of the State Department’s bureau will ensure that there is “one strategy and one command center” to coordinate the critical mineral efforts across the federal government, Kim said.
The bill would create a congressional authorized bureau with a “clear mandate,” Kim said. “We will have that one person dedicated to thinking about energy security, critical mineral supply chain, whose job is to wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night thinking about nothing but energy and critical minerals.”
The new bureau would be similar to the State Department’s Bureau of Energy Resources, which was eliminated last year as part of the administration’s reorganization efforts. It was merged into the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs to focus on exporting domestic energy.
The congresswoman noted that during the first Trump term, the administration appointed an assistant secretary to lead the former energy bureau, but it was not a congressionally authorized position.
The bill would authorize the State Department to establish multiyear energy security compacts with partner countries to help diversify the supply chain and counter economic coercion. It would also formalize U.S. participation in the State Department’s new international critical mineral forum, known as the Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement.
The bill would expand mining and engineering fellowships, scholar exchanges, and workforce development programs.
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Kim said she is “bullish” that the legislation will pass as a stand-alone bill and noted that Sens. Chris Coons (D-DE) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) have a companion bill, the Energy Security Pacts Act.
The Trump administration has taken a number of steps to expand the domestic critical mineral supply chain over the past year. Those measures include taking direct stakes in critical mineral companies, creating international partnerships, and establishing a critical mineral stockpile.
