Federal Mining Laws (Title 30, United States Code)
1–4 Act of February 27, 1865, Sec. 9 (13 Stat. 441): Recognized that the public domain was being appropriated for mining purposes but that such appropriation was by the law of possession and that the paramount title to such lands lay in the United States.
1–5 Act of July 26, 1866 (14 Stat. 251): Declared the mineral lands of the public domain open to exploration and occupation by citizens of the United States or those who had declared their intentions to become citizens. It provided for claims 200 feet in length along the vein for each locator, with an additional claim for the discoverer, and an association could take up to 3000 feet in length. No width was specified, only sufficient ground for working the claim. Extralateral rights were granted inasmuch as the vein could be followed to any depth, with all its dips, angles and variations. The Act also provided for obtaining patent (fee title) from the United States. It also recognized local customs, rules and mining districts, so far as they were not in conflict with the laws of the United States. This Act was repealed by the Act of May 10, 1872.
1–6 Act of July 9, 1870 (16 Stat. 217; 30 U.S.C. 35): Provided for placer claims (not covered in the Act of 1866) which included all deposits except veins of quartz and other rock in place. They were limited in size to 160 acres, either by one person or an association of persons, subject to entry and patent, and where on surveyed lands required to conform to legal subdivisions. This Act, with modification, is still in force.
1–7 Act of May 10, 1872 (17 Stat. 91; 30 U.S.C. Ch. 2; Title 43 C.F.R.): This Act contains the General Mining Laws which, with amendments, are still in force today. It provides in detail for discovery, location, survey and patent of both lode and placer claims; also mill sites. It requires annual labor, or assessment work until patent. Tunnel sites for the discovery of lodes are also provided for. The succeeding pages of this manual will take up and explain the various provisions of this Act, with appropriate reference and quotations from the Code of Federal Regulations or the U.S. Code, if not covered in the C.F.R.
1–8 Act of March 3, 1872 (30 U.S.C. 71–90): Provided for the location and purchase of coal; not a mineral subject to the general mining laws. This Act was repealed by the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920.
1–9 Act of May 17, 1884 (30 U.S.C. 49a–49f): Extended the general mining laws to Alaska.
1–10 Act of August 4, 1892 (30 U.S.C. 161): Included building stone under the mining laws subject to the provisions governing placer mining claims.
1–11 Act of February 11, 1897 (29 Stat. 526, 30 U.S.C. 101): Specifically included petroleum or other mineral oils as a mineral under the general mining laws subject to the provisions governing placer mining claims. This Act was repealed by the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920.
1–12 Act of January 31, 1901 (30 U.S.C. 162): Included salt in any form under the general mining laws subject to the provisions governing placer mining claims, limited to one claim per person. This Act was repealed by the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920.
1–13 Act of April 28, 1904 (30 U.S.C. 34): The monuments on the ground shall constitute the highest authority as to which lands are patented notwithstanding a conflict with the survey record or the calls and descriptions recited in the patent. Also, in extending the public land surveys, all patented mineral claims shall be segregated from the public lands as they are monumented on the ground.
1–14 Act of February 25, 1920 (30 U.S.C. Chapter 3A): The Mineral Leasing Act removed deposits of oil, gas, coal, potassium, sodium, phosphate, oil shale, native asphalt, solid and semi-solid bitumen and bituminous rock, including oil impregnated rock or sands, and sulphur in Louisiana and New Mexico from the general mining laws and other laws and set up a system of leasing for these minerals.
1–15 Act of July 31, 1947 (61 Stat. 681): The Materials Act authorized the sale of mineral materials if the disposal of such materials was not otherwise expressly authorized by law.
1–16 Act of August 13, 1954 (30 U.S.C. 521): Provided for multiple development of mineral deposits under the mining and mineral leasing laws. All mining claims and mill sites located after this date, and those prior to this date that did not preserve their rights, do not include leasable minerals, such minerals being subject to exploration and development under the Mineral Leasing Act.
1–17 Act of July 23, 1955 (30 U.S.C. 601): Removed common varieties of sand, stone, gravel, pumice (except block pumice), pumicite or cinders from appropriation under the general mining laws. Also restricted the use of the surface of unpatented mining claims to that portion necessary for the development and mining of the deposit and permitted the federal government to manage the surface and vegetative resources.
1–18 Act of August 11, 1955 (30 U.S.C. Chapter 16): All lands previously withdrawn for power sites, except those actually in use or being constructed upon, were restored to mining locations subject to future use for power development under the authority of the United States, without reimbursement, and subject to provisions for recording the location within 60 days from date of location and assessment work within 60 days of the expiration of the assessment year.
1–19 Act of March 18, 1960 (30 U.S.C. 42): Provided for the location of mill sites in conjunction with placer claims subject to the same requirements of survey as placers. This allowed location of mill sites by legal subdivisions.
1–20 Act of September 28, 1962 (76 Stat. 652): Provides for free use of petrified wood.
1–21 Act of December 24, 1970 (30 U.S.C. Chapter 23): This act provides for geothermal steam leases and should the lease be terminated, the lessee has the right to complete the location of mining claims for minerals subject to location which would constitute a byproduct if commercial production of steam continued. Conversion to a lease under the Mineral Leasing Act for lease minerals is provided for if the lease minerals are capable of being produced in commercial quantities.
1–22 Act of October 21, 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1744; 43 C.F.R. 3833): All unpatented mining claims, including lodes, placers, mill sites and tunnel sites located prior to this date must be recorded with the proper state office of the Bureau of Land Management by filing a copy of the record of the location (or last amended) notice or certificate, as required by state law, together with a map showing the claim and its relation to the public land survey or protracted grid, by October 21, 1979; and also provide evidence of assessment work for the preceding assessment year, or notice of intention to hold, and thereafter prior to December 31 of each calendar year. Claims located after October 21, 1976 shall be recorded within 90 days of date of location and evidence of assessment work or notice of intention to hold, if assessment work is not required, filed prior to December 31 of each calendar year after the year of location. Change in ownership must also be recorded and (presumably) amended location certificates. If these recording requirements are not met, the claims are deemed to be abandoned.
1–23 Reservations, Grants, Withdrawals and Severance of Minerals: Indian and military reservations, national parks and monuments are not, as a rule, open to mineral exploration except in special instances cited in 1–24 below. National forests are open to mineral exploration, location and patent, but subject to rules and regulations of the Forest Service. National Forest Wilderness Areas are covered in 1–24 below.
Grants include the Spanish Land Grants, Railroad Grants, and School Grants (School Sections), most of which included the minerals.
At least one Spanish Land Grant, The Sangre de Christo Grant comprising Costilla County, Colorado, has its own system of mineral surveys.
Arizona has its own rules for locating mining claims on state (school) lands. Indemnity grants were made in lieu of other lands previously appropriated, including unsurveyed school sections appropriated in part under the mining laws.
The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of December 18, 1971 granted certain lands to the natives in Alaska and allowed owners of claims located prior to August 31, 1971 five years to proceed to patent. Regulations permitted filing an application for mineral survey to be considered an application for patent.
Withdrawals made under the authority of the President are not subject to any form of location. Withdrawals under the Act of June 25, 1910 (43 U.S.C. 141, as amended) are subject to location for metalliferous minerals only. The Act, known as the Pickett Act, authorized the President to make withdrawals for various purposes such as power, irrigation, classification of lands.
Withdrawals under the first form Reclamation Act of June 17, 1902 are not subject to mining location unless opened under the Act of April 23, 1932. Lands withdrawn under the second form of the Act are subject to location.
The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of October 21, 1976(43 U.S.C. 1714) provides for withdrawals by the Secretary of the Interior, either on his own motion or at the request of any department or agency head, with certain restrictions and limitations. Each withdrawal and subsequent restoration must be reviewed to determine if mining locations are allowed, and under what conditions.
Severance occurs when minerals are reserved to the United States in a patent. Some of the Spanish Land Grants reserved certain minerals such as gold, silver, quicksilver and antimony.
The Act of March 3, 1891 reserved minerals from townsite entries on mineral land, but each patent should be checked; some of the early patents reserved only “known lodes.”
The Act of July 17, 1914 permitted agricultural entry or purchase of lands withdrawn for phosphate, nitrate, potash, oil, gas or asphalt with a reservation of these minerals to the United States.
The Act of July 20, 1956 permitted the disposition of these minerals discovered and located prior to the Mineral Leasing Act.
The Stockraising Homestead Act of December 29, 1916 allowed entry of 320 acres rather than the 160 acre preemption homestead, but reserved the minerals to the United States, the minerals being subject to disposal under the general mining and mineral leasing laws. The surface owner is protected by the Act, and a bond must be posted with the Bureau of Land Management unless satisfactory arrangements can be made between the mineral and surface owner (43 C.F.R. 3814).
Lands patented under the Color of Title Act (43 U.S.C. 1068), by exchange under the Taylor Grazing Act (43 U.S.C. 315g) and by Forest Exchanges (16 U.S.C. 485) with mineral reservation to the United States, are subject to appropriation under the mining and mineral leasing laws.
The Atomic Energy Act of August 1, 1946 reserved fissionable source material, uranium and thorium, to the United States, but these provisions have since been rescinded and such minerals are locatable under the mining laws. Mining claims for fissionable source materials could be located on lands known to be valuable for coal under the Act of August 11, 1955 (30 U.S.C. 541 through 541i) which expired August 11, 1975.
1–24 Areas Subject to Special Mining Laws:
O & C Lands: The Act of April 8, 1948 (62 Stat. 162) reopened the revested Oregon and California Railroad and Reconveyed Coos Bay Wagon Road Grant Lands to exploration, location, entry and disposition under the United States Mining Laws, but imposed additional requirements regarding the filing of location certificates, affidavits of annual labor, use of timber, etc. See 43 C.F.R. 3821 for details.
Alaska Public Sale Act of August 30, 1949 (48 U.S.C. 364a–364e) segregated for classification and sale certain lands, but reserved the minerals for disposition under applicable law. Provided compensation to the surface owner for damage. See 43 C.F.R. 3822.
National Forest Wilderness Areas are open to prospecting and mining under existing laws until midnight, December 31, 1983 by which time they shall be closed except for valid existing rights. Patents will be for mineral only with title to the surface reserved to the United States, subject to certain use to facilitate mining. See 43 C.F.R. 3823.
City of Prescott, Arizona Watershed: The Act of January 19, 1933 (16 U.S.C. 482a) restricted future mining locations to minerals only with restricted use of the surface. See C.F.R. 3824.
Papago Indian Reservation, Arizona: The Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461–479) as amended, restores from temporary withdrawal mineral location and entry under the United States Mining Laws, but imposes additional requirements for recording locations with the superintendent of the reservation, payment of annual rental to the tribe and a fee in lieu of the annual rental at time of patent. See 43 C.F.R. 3825.
National Park Service Areas: National parks and national monuments are, as a general rule, closed to mining, but there are exceptions, subject to special rules, regulations, and reservations in the patent. These special areas are: Mt. McKinley National Park, Alaska (see 43 C.F.R. 3826.1); Olympic National Park, Washington (see 43 C.F.R. 3826.2); Death Valley National Monument, California (see 43 C.F.R. 3826.3); Glacier Bay National Monument, Alaska (see 43 C.F.R. 3826.4); Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Arizona (see 43 C.F.R. 3826.5). The Act of September 28, 1976 (90 Stat. 1342, 16 U.S.C. 1901) prohibits further mining locations in these national parks and monuments.
King Range National Conservation Area, California: Mining claims are not prohibited, but those located after October 21, 1970 are subject to strict regulations and inspection of all mining activity (see 43 C.F.R. 3827).
1–25 Acquired Lands: Minerals on acquired lands are not generally open to mineral entry. These minerals are possibly subject to leasing only (see 43 C.F.R. 3500).
1–26 Update: In order that mineral surveyors may keep abreast of new laws it is desirable that the Office of Chief, Division of Cadastral Survey, Washington, D.C. keep the mineral surveyors advised, furnishing copies of the Acts and pertinent regulations, so far as it is practicable to do so. Mineral surveyors may also keep abreast of new legislation through the local offices of the BLM, their congressmen and by becoming members of local mining associations and attending their meetings.