S 1463
· 119th Congress
· Energy
Finding ORE Act
Sponsor
Latest action
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 93.
Action timeline
Every recorded action on this bill, newest first. Stage badges color-code the legislative path.
Jun 18, 2025
committee
Committee on Foreign Relations. Reported by Senator Risch with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
Foreign Relations Committee
Jun 18, 2025
other
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 93.
Jun 05, 2025
committee
Committee on Foreign Relations. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
Foreign Relations Committee
Apr 10, 2025
introduced
Introduced in Senate
Apr 10, 2025
introduced
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Foreign Relations Committee
Text versions
Each stage of the bill — official text published by GPO. Click any format to read on congress.gov / govinfo.
Changelog
ⓘ
How a bill moves through Congress. Each stage produces a new official text. The diff between them shows what changed at that step.
ih / is — Introduced in House / Senate. First filed version.rfh / rfs — Referred to a committee for review.rh / rs — Reported back by the committee to the floor (often with amendments — this is where most language changes happen).pcs / pch — Placed on Calendar for floor consideration.eh / es — Engrossed. Passed by the originating chamber. Text is now what was actually voted on.rdh / rds — Received by the other chamber.eah / eas — Engrossed Amendment. The other chamber passed an amended version.ath / ats — Agreed to. Both chambers settled on the same text.enr — Enrolled. Final reconciled text, sent to the President.pl — Public Law. Signed by the President. It's now law.pp — Public Print. Official printing post-enactment.
Most bills die before eh/es. Going from pcs → enr is the full path through both chambers.
ⓘ
How a bill moves through Congress. Each stage produces a new official text. The diff between them shows what changed at that step.
ih/is— Introduced in House / Senate. First filed version.rfh/rfs— Referred to a committee for review.rh/rs— Reported back by the committee to the floor (often with amendments — this is where most language changes happen).pcs/pch— Placed on Calendar for floor consideration.eh/es— Engrossed. Passed by the originating chamber. Text is now what was actually voted on.rdh/rds— Received by the other chamber.eah/eas— Engrossed Amendment. The other chamber passed an amended version.ath/ats— Agreed to. Both chambers settled on the same text.enr— Enrolled. Final reconciled text, sent to the President.pl— Public Law. Signed by the President. It's now law.pp— Public Print. Official printing post-enactment.
Most bills die before eh/es. Going from pcs → enr is the full path through both chambers.
Line-level diff between text versions of this bill — what actually changed at each legislative stage.
+202
−22
53 unchanged
--- Introduced (Senate)
+++ Reported (Senate)
@@ -1,8 +1,9 @@
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
-[S. 1463 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
+[S. 1463 Reported in Senate (RS)]
<DOC>
+Calendar No. 93
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1463
@@ -18,9 +19,15 @@
April 10, 2025
-Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Young, Mr. Hickenlooper, and Mr. Cornyn)
-introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
-Committee on Foreign Relations
+Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Young, Mr. Hickenlooper, Mr. Cornyn, and
+Mr. Cruz) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
+referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
+
+June 18, 2025
+
+Reported by Mr. Risch, with an amendment
+[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
+in italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
@@ -34,18 +41,146 @@
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
+<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>
+
+<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Finding Opportunities for
+Resource Exploration Act'' or the ``Finding ORE Act''.</DELETED>
+
+<DELETED>SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.</DELETED>
+
+<DELETED> In this Act:</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (1) Allied foreign country.--The term ``allied
+foreign country'' means a country with which the United States
+has entered into a mutual defense treaty or other mutual
+defense agreement.</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (2) Critical mineral.--The term ``critical
+mineral'' has the meaning given the term in section 7002(a) of
+the Energy Act of 2020 (30 U.S.C. 1606(a)).</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (3) Institution of higher education.--The term
+``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
+term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
+U.S.C. 1001).</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (4) Partner foreign country.--The term ``partner
+foreign country'' means a country that is a source of a
+critical mineral or rare earth element.</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (5) Rare earth element.--The term ``rare earth
+element'' means cerium, dysprosium, erbium, europium,
+gadolinium, holmium, lanthanum, lutetium, neodymium,
+praseodymium, promethium, samarium, scandium, terbium, thulium,
+ytterbium, or yttrium.</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the
+Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the
+United States Geological Survey.</DELETED>
+
+<DELETED>SEC. 3. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH RESPECT TO THE
+MAPPING OF CRITICAL MINERALS AND RARE EARTH
+ELEMENTS.</DELETED>
+
+<DELETED> (a) Memorandum of Understanding.--The Secretary may enter
+into a memorandum of understanding with 1 or more heads of agencies of
+partner foreign countries with respect to scientific and technical
+cooperation in the mapping of critical minerals and rare earth
+elements.</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (b) Objectives.--In negotiating a memorandum of
+understanding under subsection (a), the Secretary shall seek to
+increase the security and resilience of international supply chains for
+critical minerals and rare earth elements by--</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (1) committing to assisting the partner foreign
+country through cooperative activities described in subsection
+(c) that help the partner foreign country map reserves of
+critical minerals and rare earth elements;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (2) ensuring that private companies headquartered
+in the United States or an allied foreign country are offered
+the right of first refusal in the further development of
+critical minerals and rare earth elements in the partner
+foreign country;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (3) facilitating private-sector investment in the
+exploration and development of critical minerals and rare earth
+elements, including by leveraging preferential financing from
+entities such as the United States International Development
+Finance Corporation and the Export-Import Bank of the United
+States that prioritizes projects committed to processing
+minerals in the United States or an allied foreign country;
+and</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (4) ensuring that mapping data created through the
+cooperative activities described in subsection (c) is protected
+against unauthorized access by, or disclosure to, governmental
+or private entities based in countries that are not--</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (A) a party to the memorandum of
+understanding; or</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (B) an allied foreign country.</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (c) Cooperative Activities.--The cooperative activities
+referred to in subsection (b) include--</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (1) acquisition, compilation, analysis, and
+interpretation of geologic, geophysical, geochemical, and
+spectroscopic remote sensing data;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (2) prospectivity mapping and mineral resource
+assessment;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (3) analysis of geoscience data, including
+developing derivative map products that can help more
+effectively evaluate the mineral resources of the partner
+foreign country;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (4) scientific collaboration to enhance the
+understanding and management of the natural resources of the
+partner foreign country to contribute to the sustainable
+development of the mineral resources sector of that partner
+foreign country;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (5) training and capacity building in each area
+described in paragraphs (1) through (4);</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (6) facilitation of education and specialized
+training in geoscience and mineral resource management at
+institutions of higher education;</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (7) training in relevant international standards
+for relevant officials of the government and private companies
+of the partner foreign country; and</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (8) cooperation among entities of the partner
+foreign country that are a party to the memorandum of
+understanding and entities in the United States, including
+Federal departments and agencies, institutions of higher
+education, research centers, and private companies.</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (d) Notification to Congress.--The Secretary shall notify
+Congress not later than 30 days before the Secretary intends to enter
+into a memorandum of understanding under subsection (a).</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (e) Collaboration With Secretary of State.--The Secretary
+shall collaborate with the Secretary of State in--</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (1) prioritizing and selecting partner foreign
+countries with which to enter into a memorandum of
+understanding under subsection (a);</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (2) negotiating a memorandum of understanding
+under subsection (a); and</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (3) implementing a memorandum of understanding
+entered into under subsection (a).</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (f) Consultation With Private Sector.--The Secretary shall
+consult with relevant private sector actors, as the Secretary
+determines to be appropriate, in--</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (1) prioritizing and selecting partner foreign
+countries with which to enter into a memorandum of
+understanding under subsection (a); and</DELETED>
+<DELETED> (2) assessing how a memorandum of understanding
+can best facilitate private sector interest in pursuing the
+further development of critical minerals and rare earth
+elements in accordance with the objectives described in
+subsection (b).</DELETED>
+
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Finding Opportunities for Resource
Exploration Act'' or the ``Finding ORE Act''.
-SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
+SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
+
+It is the sense of Congress that the United States should
+prioritize, to the greatest extent practicable, the onshoring of
+critical mineral processing.
+
+SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Allied foreign country.--The term ``allied foreign
-country'' means a country with which the United States has
-entered into a mutual defense treaty or other mutual defense
-agreement.
+country'' means a member country of the North Atlantic Treaty
+Organization or 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).
(2) Critical mineral.--The term ``critical mineral'' has
the meaning given the term in section 7002(a) of the Energy Act
of 2020 (30 U.S.C. 1606(a)).
@@ -65,7 +200,7 @@
of the Interior, acting through the Director of the United
States Geological Survey.
-SEC. 3. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH RESPECT TO THE MAPPING OF
+SEC. 4. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH RESPECT TO THE MAPPING OF
CRITICAL MINERALS AND RARE EARTH ELEMENTS.
(a) Memorandum of Understanding.--The Secretary may enter into a
@@ -87,11 +222,7 @@
country;
(3) facilitating private-sector investment in the
exploration and development of critical minerals and rare earth
-elements, including by leveraging preferential financing from
-entities such as the United States International Development
-Finance Corporation and the Export-Import Bank of the United
-States that prioritizes projects committed to processing
-minerals in the United States or an allied foreign country; and
+elements; and
(4) ensuring that mapping data created through the
cooperative activities described in subsection (c) is protected
against unauthorized access by, or disclosure to, governmental
@@ -124,18 +255,36 @@
entities in the United States, including Federal departments
and agencies, institutions of higher education, research
centers, and private companies.
-(d) Notification to Congress.--The Secretary shall notify Congress
-not later than 30 days before the Secretary intends to enter into a
-memorandum of understanding under subsection (a).
-(e) Collaboration With Secretary of State.--The Secretary shall
-collaborate with the Secretary of State in--
+(d) Notification and Report to Congress.--
+(1) Definition of appropriate committees of congress.--In
+this subsection, the term ``appropriate committees of
+Congress'' means--
+(A) the Committees on Energy and Natural Resources,
+Foreign Relations, and Appropriations of the Senate;
+and
+(B) the Committees on Natural Resources, Foreign
+Affairs, and Appropriations of the House of
+Representatives.
+(2) Notification and report.--Not later than 30 days before
+the Secretary intends to enter into a memorandum of
+understanding under subsection (a), the Secretary shall--
+(A) notify the appropriate committees of Congress;
+and
+(B) submit to the appropriate committees of
+Congress a report detailing the implementing partners,
+scope of the memorandum of understanding, activities to
+be undertaken, estimated costs, and source of funding.
+(e) Concurrence of the Secretary of State.--The Secretary shall
+obtain the concurrence of the Secretary of State in--
(1) prioritizing and selecting partner foreign countries
with which to enter into a memorandum of understanding under
subsection (a);
(2) negotiating a memorandum of understanding under
-subsection (a); and
+subsection (a);
(3) implementing a memorandum of understanding entered into
-under subsection (a).
+under subsection (a), including through the use of funds made
+available to the Secretary of State; and
+(4) carrying out subsection (d).
(f) Consultation With Private Sector.--The Secretary shall consult
with relevant private sector actors, as the Secretary determines to be
appropriate, in--
@@ -146,4 +295,35 @@
facilitate private sector interest in pursuing the further
development of critical minerals and rare earth elements in
accordance with the objectives described in subsection (b).
-<all>
+
+SEC. 5. SAVINGS CLAUSE.
+
+Nothing in this Act impedes or otherwise alters any authority of
+the Director of the United States Geological Survey provided by--
+(1) the matter under the heading ``GEOLOGICAL SURVEY'' of
+the first section of the Act of March 3, 1879 (43 U.S.C.
+31(a)); or
+(2) the first section of Public Law 87-626 (43 U.S.C.
+31(b)).
+Calendar No. 93
+
+119th CONGRESS
+
+1st Session
+
+S. 1463
+
+_______________________________________________________________________
+
+A BILL
+
+To allow the Secretary of the Interior to enter into memoranda of
+understanding for the purpose of scientific and technical cooperation
+in the mapping of critical minerals and rare earth elements, and for
+other purposes.
+
+_______________________________________________________________________
+
+June 18, 2025
+
+Reported with an amendment
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Cosponsors (4)
Members who signed on to support this bill.