The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is increasing mining claim fees, which by law must be adjusted for inflation based on the U.S. Consumer Price Index.
The BLM increase affects location and maintenance fees for claims on federal lands subject to the U.S. 1872 Mining Law.
The one-time location fee is now US$30 for each new mining claim or site. The annual maintenance fee for each is now US$125.
“This is the first mining fee revision since August 1993 and reflects a 25 per cent increase in the Consumer Price Index since that time,” says Robert Anderson, deputy assistant director for minerals, realty and resource protection. Some small miners who qualify will not be subject to higher fees.
The CPI, which is based on monthly data on changes in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative basket of goods and services, increased by 25% from January 1993 through to Dec. 30, 2003.
The BLM is legally required to raise fees in accordance with the CPI. Copies of the new rule are available from BLM state offices. In addition, the complete text of the rule is available by visiting www.blm.gov.
There are about 290,000 active mining claims on U.S. federal land, from which the BLM collected US$28 million in fees in 2003.
The BLM, an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior, manages 264 million surface acres. Most of this public land is in 12 western states, including Alaska. The bureau has a budget of US$1.8 billion and administers more than 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation.
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