PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Aug 5, 1999
Abandoned Mine Restoration Act of 1999 - Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to carry out a program, managed by the head of the Sacramento District Office of the Corps of Engineers, to assist stewards of lands owned by the United States and non-Federal entities to address environmental and water quality problems caused by drainage and related activities from abandoned, inactive, and post-production noncoal mines.Permits the Secretary to provide technical, planning, design, restoration, remediation, and construction assistance to Federal and non-Federal entities for carrying out projects to address such environmental and water quality problems, but only if the Secretary determines that such a project will improve environmental quality, is in the public interest, and is cost-effective.Requires that the Federal share of the cost of a project to be 100 percent for projects carried out on Federal land and 65 percent for other projects. Sets forth provisions governing Federal cost share credits and reimbursements to non-Federal entities for project resources, services, and work.Requires that the non-Federal share of operation and maintenance costs for a project to be 100 percent, except that in the case of a project undertaken on Federal lands, the Federal agency with management responsibility for the lands shall be responsible for all operation and maintenance costs.Prohibits more than $10 million from being allotted for projects in a single locality, but permits the Secretary to accept funds voluntarily contributed by the non-Federal or Federal entity for expanding the scope of services requested.Prohibits the Secretary or any State or political subdivision which implements any remedial action which is consistent with a State and Environmental Protection Agency approved remediation plan at an abandoned mine site and adjacent lands to provide water quality protection from being treated, based on actions taken consistent with the plan, as being: (1) the site owner or operator or the arranger or transporter for disposal; (2) responsible for any discharge or release of pollutants, contaminants, or hazardous substances on or from the abandoned mine site or adjacent lands; or (3) subject to any enforcement action pursuant to Federal law, except for violations involving gross negligence.Authorizes the Secretary to provide assistance to the Western Universities Mine-Land Reclamation and Restoration Consortium for carrying out the purposes of the program.Authorizes appropriations.
People & committees
Rep. Gibbons, Jim [R-NV-2] · R–NV
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Subcommittee Hearings Held.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Finance and Hazardous Materials.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.
Referred to the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Commerce, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Commerce, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Commerce, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Commerce, 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.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 20, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze H.R.2753 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.2753 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.2753 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.2753 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.