Legislation & Regulation
Legislative and Regulatory Update
July 2022 by Scott Harn
• Extremist groups are at it again
As can be expected, environmental extremist groups have filed suit to stop another mining project. This time, it’s the Excellon Idaho Gold’s Kilgore Gold Exploration Project in Clark County, Idaho.
Some of the usual suspects are involved—the Idaho Conservation League and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition.
The groups claim the Forest Service violated environmental laws when they approved exploratory drilling. They claim the Forest Service should have opted for a complete Environmental Impact Statement (EIR) rather than following an Executive Order issued by former President Trump that expedited the review process.
• No sales tax on precious metals in Tennessee
Tennessee became the 42nd state to eliminate sales taxes on precious metals on May 27th.
Lead bill sponsor Bud Hulsey said, “I’ve been working to free gold and silver from sales taxes in Tennessee since my kids were in elementary school. The Sound Money Defense League, in-state dealers, and folks all across Tennessee made their voices heard and helped get this bill across the finish line.”
The only states that still tax precious metal coins and bullion are Vermont, New Jersey, Maine, Kentucky, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Mississippi and Hawaii. The District of Columbia also taxes physical gold and silver purchases.
Legislative and Regulatory Update
- Welcome changes in Washington, DC
- Giving power back to the people
MMAC Update
One caller wondered why he should be required to join MMAC, asked why MMAC was not a non-profit, and compared it to some kind of extortion attempt. If he had questions like these, I assume there are others with similar questions and I will address them here.
Mining Community Loses A Great Leader: Gerald "Jerry" Hobbs
He certainly wasn’t afraid of a fight or a court battle, and he didn’t back away from calling out those who tried to compromise the rights of miners.
SB 838 and the Salem Witch Hunt
In every sense, this was a witch hunt with a preconceived agenda to heavily restrict or outright prohibit most small-scale mining in Oregon.
AMRA Takes On USFS in Idaho
Mr. Hughes was obviously shaken by our interaction and we are quite confident he assumed we were all missing teeth, long-haired, uneducated, backwoods miners who would immediately become submissive. That didn’t happen...
Oregon Miners Take DEQ to Court, Again
Since 2005, a group representing a handful of Oregon and Washington mining organizations, centered around the Eastern Oregon Mining Association (EOMA) and the Waldo Mining District (WMD), have been actively fighting the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) over their then new “700PM Suction Dredge Mining Permit.”
Record $11 Million Fine for California Mine
State regulators imposed a record $11 million fine on the operators of a gold mine in the Sierra foothills east of Sacramento.
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