Texas Border Business
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressmen Vicente Gonzalez (TX-15) and Lance Gooden (TX-05) introduced the Reclaiming American Rare Earths (RARE) Act, bipartisan legislation to drive domestic production and reduce America’s dependence on China for rare earth minerals used to build the technology that keeps our country safe and connected. The RARE Act establishes tax incentives for the domestic production of rare earth elements and minerals.
This legislation is the House companion to similar legislation introduced by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX).
The Department of the Interior has designated 35 of these rare earth minerals as ‘critical’, and the United States sources fourteen of them entirely from foreign suppliers. China is a leading supplier for twenty-two of the thirty-five. The RARE Act is specifically designed to change that.
“Ending our dependence on China starts today,” said Congressman Gonzalez. “The RARE Act will allow the United States to develop a reliable domestic supply of critical minerals and rare earth elements and eliminate this pressure point that could have lasting impacts on our national security and most importantly, our way of life.”
“A reliable supply of these materials is essential to American economic and security interests. We shouldn’t have to rely on the Chinese Communist Party for our critical military and communications technology,” said Congressman Gooden.“Our future technological capacity will depend on our ability to cultivate an economic environment that is favorable to robust domestic production of these resources. By decreasing our dependence on China, the RARE Act would strengthen our national security, spur American innovation, grow our economy, and ensure the United States has the resource independence required to cement our leadership in technologies that define the 21st century.”
