I hope with this blog addition we can all have a single place to discuss mining law and regulation.
It is, in my opinion, in all miners best interest to understand their rights and duties pertaining to mining. With education and understanding the ongoing incursion on our rights by our employees (government administrators) will easily be reversed.
I am working on some posts to describe the legal framework of mining law in the United States. Single issues such as the recent dredging fiasco on the Boise National Forest will be given their own separate thread so we can more easily find answers as these threads grow in size and number.
All are welcome to post, comment and contribute.
Clay
Comments
I've written an article about the laws of the National Forests and how they affect your right to mine the public lands. I tried to post it here but it's just to big. Below is a link to the full article - no advertising or heavy graphics - it should be a quick page load.
LAW OF THE FOREST
Prospecting and Mining on the National Forests
Well it's that time of year again.
If you haven't filed your claims maintenance fee yet this year you are running out of time. Don't be late or your claims will be deemed "abandoned" by the BLM!
Technically the assessment year runs from noon on September 1st of each year to noon on September 1st the following year. Just to be safe it would be wise to make sure you are paid up by August 31st.
I get a lot of questions about filing requirements this time of year. Rather than trying to answer every one personally I will try to answer all your questions in this one post. If I miss anything or something is unclear please don't hesitate to put in your 2 cents.
-------------------------------
ANNUAL CLAIM MAINTENANCE FEE PAYMENT
The assessment fee (claim maintenance payment fee in BLM speak) for this year (2011) is now $140.00 per claim.
You may put all your claims on one maintenance payment declaration and you may pay all the fees due in one check, money order, cash or Visa/Mastercard. Make your check payable to DOI - Bureau of Land Management.
Always include your MC registration number (AMC###### in Arizona) and the claim name and location on your declaration. Don't forget to sign the check and the declaration! If your payment is less than required the payment you have sent will be applied to the lowest MC numbers first, once the money runs out your remaining claims will be declared abandoned.
You may mail your payment and declaration to the BLM. As long as it is postmarked before September 1st and received in their office before September 15th you are good to go.
If you are paying an Annual Maintenance Fee you are required by law to file an INTENTION TO HOLD at the County Recorders Office on your existing claims each year. The BLM can not declare your claims as "abandoned" for failure to make this public filing but it is a good idea to do so.
-------------------------------
SMALL MINERS WAIVER
Many of you are confused by the Small Miners Waiver. This waiver is available to those of you who have 10 or fewer mining claims Nationally. In addition ALL the other locators listed on your claims must have 10 or fewer claims Nationally.
You must have done your assessment work on EACH claim or group of claims. The Small Miners Waiver relieves you of the maintenance payment for the year in which it is filed. There is no fee to file a Small Miners Waiver.
If you are eligible under the above rule you must file your Small Miners Waiver ANNUALLY before September 1st of each year.
The first years assessment is always paid in full at the time of filing your claim with the BLM. There is NO Small Miners Waiver available in the first year.
If you have not declared your Small Miners Waiver in the previous year you must explain why no assessment work was done in that year. For those of you who are making your first Waiver on a new claim the reason is simply "My claim was located in that assessment year". If you have been paying your yearly maintenance fee and are for the first time taking advantage of the Small Miners Waiver the reason would be "I paid a maintenance fee to maintain my claim(s) during that assessment year". The form provided by the BLM does not have a field to insert this requirement - I suggest you might add it in the blank space on page two.
The legal year for assessment WORK ASSESSMENT is different than the MAINTENANCE FEE year. This has led to a lot of confusion.
If you are filing a Small Miners Waiver the WORK ASSESSMENT year runs from December 30 (NOT December 31st!). You should file your Small Miners Waiver before September 1st of 2011 and then file your Affidavit of Work before December 30th 2011 (If you can you should file before September 1st so as not to
Thanks Tim. And thank you for providing the forum and bandwidth to do so.
If anyone does not have copies of the seminal laws of mining I would encourage everyone to download and read them. They are the foundation of our right to the mineral estate found on the public lands. They are not complex and a basic understanding of them will make for a much more productive discussion.
Ruby has provided copies HERE as well as many more free resources including free maps and history.
Clay