Gov Watchdog Finds National Security Gaps in Mining of Critical Minerals on America’s Public Lands

Gov Watchdog Finds National Security Gaps in Mining of Critical Minerals on America's Public Lands

GAO could not confirm that seven of 15 sampled mining companies were incorporated in the United States, finds major gaps in what the government knows about foreign investment in mining on federal lands

Washington, D.C. - As the United States races to reduce its reliance on foreign countries for critical minerals, the federal government has been handing out exclusive rights to mine America's public lands without checking whether the people and companies receiving those rights meet the requirements to hold them, even allowing companies with ties to our adversaries to mine our public lands according to two new Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports released today by Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), and Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.).

"Our mining laws date back to 1872, and we're still running the system like it's the Wild West. We've somehow managed to hand out mining claims for generations without doing the most basic homework on who gets to hold them. And for all of Trump's tough talk about China, he seems awfully comfortable inviting foreign-owned mining companies onto Americans' public lands without checking who's backing them. Congress needs to modernize our mining laws and bring some basic accountability to who profits from our public lands," said Ranking Member Huffman.

Federal law reserves mining claims on public lands for U.S. citizens and companies incorporated in the United States. The Bureau of Land Management, which runs the mining claim system, does not collect citizenship information from claimants, does not record whether they qualify, and rarely checks in the first place. A BLM official told GAO that companies from foreign adversary nations could hold claims on federal lands through U.S. subsidiaries, and claimants do not have to disclose whether a foreign company or government owns part of them.

When GAO reviewed a sample of 15 companies holding mining claims, investigators found no evidence that seven of them were incorporated in the United States, as the law requires. When GAO asked BLM for help confirming where these companies were incorporated, the agency had no additional information to offer.

In a second report, GAO reviewed ownership information for 43 operators of critical minerals mines on federal lands and found that at least 25 were subsidiaries of foreign entities. In at least two cases, Chinese entities had a financial interest in the parent companies.

Mining claims grant the exclusive right to extract minerals such as copper and gold, royalty-free, for as long as the holder pays annual fees. Claimants do not have to disclose whether a foreign company or government owns part of them. Australia and Canada, two of the world's top mineral producers, require foreign investors to disclose their owners and have forced some to sell stakes in critical minerals companies on national security grounds.

GAO recommends that the Bureau of Land Management collect citizenship information from mining claimants and document that they qualify.

Read the GAO's first report about citizenship requirements here.

Read the GAO's second report about information on foreign investment here.

Background

The United States depends heavily on foreign countries for critical minerals such as copper and lithium, which go into everything from electric vehicle batteries and power lines to phones and medical equipment. GAO has warned that this dependence leaves supply chains open to disruption by adversary nations. Federal lands cover nearly one-third of the country and are a significant source of these minerals.

Under the General Mining Act of 1872, individuals and companies stake claims on most federal lands without agency approval, and BLM has recorded an average of more than 60,000 new claims every year since 2021. Since 2025, President Trump has issued a series of executive orders to expand mining on federal lands and cut reliance on foreign minerals. GAO's findings show his administration has not taken the most basic step to keep those minerals in the right hands: confirming who holds the claims and preventing our adversaries from taking our resources. A secure domestic supply of critical minerals starts with knowing who controls the mines on public lands.

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