House Resources Marks Up Hardy Legislation Closing Skills Gap in Mining Industry

Press Release

Legislation introduced by Nevada Congressman Cresent Hardy (R-NV) to address the skills gap in the mining sector today passed through the House Committee on Natural Resources.

The Mining Schools Enhancement Act (H.R. 3734) amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 by directing the federal government to distribute 70 percent of funding already made available through the Applied Science Tech Transfer Program to accredited mining schools, including the University of Nevada, Reno, to enhance and support those educational programs and involve more undergraduate and graduate students in critical research.

"Whether it's minerals to power our industrial companies, metals that allow our consumer electronics and military's advanced weaponry to function, or the materials I relied on as a contractor to build roads, bridges, and dams; there isn't a single sector of our economy that isn't touched by mining," said Congressman Hardy. "My bill is a common sense approach to boost STEM education so that we can fill the skills gap in the mining workforce by increasing the number of engineers and scientists in the field of mining."

This morning, the House Natural Resources Committee marked up a series of bills that included Congressman Hardy's legislation, as part of a mine reclamation package that passed on a bipartisan voice vote today.

Congressman Hardy's bill will now be presented to the entire House of Representatives for its full consideration. This comes after last week; when the House of Representatives passed Congressman Hardy's Eastern Nevada Land Implementation Improvement Act on a bipartisan vote of 360-7.

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