On Wednesday, July 1, the RECLAIM Act (HR 2156) passed the U.S. House of Representatives as part of The Moving Forward Act (H.R. 2), a bill to address America’s infrastructure needs and create jobs in the wake of the economic and health crisis caused by COVID-19.

Roger Carver, a retired coal miner and former president of UMW Local Union 1281 in Nulca applauded the news:

“As a former coal miner and resident of a coal community dealing with the closing of both a plant and mine, I am glad to see Congress finally pass the RECLAIM Act as part of the infrastructure package. This bill has long had bi-partisan support and it will help accelerate economically depressed coal communities like Nucla forward into the future. RECLAIM alone will bring $45 million on investment back to Colorado’s coal communities to put miners back to work cleaning up old mines and diversifying our rural economies. We have to start moving forward, not backwards, and invest in a better future the next generations.”  

The RECLAIM Act would invest $1 billion in projects that clean up abandoned coal mines and their polluted waters, and catalyze community economic development projects on or near reclaimed sites. These funds would be invested in over twenty states across the country. Colorado could see up to $45 million re-invested in coal communities creating jobs by reclaiming mines and supporting local economic development.

In addition to the RECLAIM Act, the Moving Forward Act includes H.R.4248 to reauthorize the fee supporting the Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Fund. According to a recent study, in combination, these two bills would create over 13,000 jobs per year restoring abandoned mine lands and waters in Appalachia.

For years, residents have advocated for these bills as job creation measures to support coal communities as they faced job loss and economic decline due to a disappearing coal industry. However, these jobs are even more critical for coalfield communities as they grapple with further economic decline due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Now that the House has passed The Moving Forward Act, the bills will be sent to the Senate for consideration. “I call on Sen. Bennet and Sen. Gardner to support many aspects of the Moving Forward Act but especially the RECLAIM Act,” said Carver. “The RECLAIM Act has enjoyed bi-partisan support for years and it is time for it to become reality. Coal communities need help now and we ask our Colorado Senators to deliver it.”

This legislation is a critical step for coal community recovery after the decline of the coal industry and the economic effects of COVID-19. The RECLAIM Act and reauthorization of the abandoned mine reclamation fee was recently endorsed by over 100 organizations across the United States in a letter to congressional leadership.