Mineral Leasing Act

Mineral Leasing Act - Title I: General Provisions Applicable to All Titles - Provides that the Secretary of the Interior shall, under such regulations as he may prescribe, issue to any person a prospecting license. States that each prospecting license shall contain such reasonable conditions as the Secretary may require, including conditions for the protection of the environment and shall be subject to all applicable Federal, State, and local laws and regulations.

Provides that a licensee may not cause any significant surface disturbance and he may not remove any mineral for sale but may remove a reasonable amount of exposed mineral deposit for analysis and study. Declares that any person who conducts mineral prospecting for commercial purposes on leasable lands without a prospecting license issued under this Act shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 for each day of violation.

Authorizes the Secretary or the head of any other Federal agency who has leasable land under his jurisdiction to remove such leasable land from the application of this Act for purposes of providing for a higher use or for protecting or enhancing the environmental quality.

Authorizes the Secretary, under such regulations as he may prescribe, to issue to any person a lease for the exploration, development,and extraction of leasable lands of: (1) oil and gas; or (2) coal, oil shale, borates, carbonates, halides, nitrates, phosphates, silicates, and sulfides of calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium, elemental sulfer or other bedded minerals; or (3) hard rock minerals. Declares that the United States reserves ownership of and the right to extract helium from all gas produced from leasable lands for oil and gas purposes. Provides that all lease rentals shall be conditioned upon payment of an annual rental in advance of not less than $5 per acre or fraction thereof.

Requires the lessee to file with the Secretary for approval an operation and reclamation plan describing the manner in which his activity will be conducted and showing that such activity will be conducted in a manner consistent with environmental regulations issued by the Secretary.

Sets forth penalties for failure to comply with any regulations issued under this Act.

Provides that any lease issued under this Act may be assigned, subject to the final approval of the Secretary, to any person qualified to hold a lease under this Act. States that an assignment of part of the acreage subject to a lease or of separate zones shall segregate the assigned and retained and such segregated leases shall continue for the term of the original lease.

Authorizes the Secretary to purchase water wells discovered by the lessee during his operations.

Provides that rights-of-way through the leasable lands may be granted by the Secretary for pipeline purposes for the transportation of oil or natural gas to any person. States that such pipelines shall be constructed, operated, and maintained as common carriers and shall convey, transport, or purchase without discrimination, oil or natural gas produced from Government lands in the vicinity, in such amounts as the Secretary may determine to be reasonable.

Title II: Oil and Gas - Provides that not more than two hundred and forty-six thousand and eighty acres may be held or controlled under oil and gas leases and options by a person in any one State. States that the maximum area which may be included in any one oil and gas lease issued under this Act is two thousand five hundred and sixty acres.

Provides that an oil and gas lease issued under this Act shall be for a term of five years and so long thereafter as it is a producing lease. Provides that the Secretary, by regulation, shall prescribe annual rentals on leases and in addition to the prescribed rent, the leases shall require payment of a royalty of not less than 12-1/2 percent in amount or value of production, as determined by the Secretary.

Authorizes the Secretary, with the consent of the Federal Agency with jurisdiction over the surface of the leasable lands, to allow the subsurface storage of oil or gas to avoid waste or to promote the conservation of natural resources.

Title III: Coal (Including Leonardite and Peat); Oil Shale, Borates, Carbonates, Halides, Nitrates, Phosphates, Silicates, and Sulfates of Calcium, Magnesium, Sodium, and Potassium, Elemental Sulfur, and Other Bedded Minerals - States that the maximum acreage that may be held or controlled directly or indirectly by a person in any one State under lease, and option, is forty-six thousand and eighty acres for coal, fifteen thousand three hundred and sixty acres for sodium, twenty-five thousand six hundred acres for potassium, five thousand one hundred and twenty acres for sulfur, ten thousand two hundred and forty acres for oil shale, and twenty thousand four hundred and eighty acres for all other leasable minerals subject to this title. Provides that not more than twenty thousand four hundred and eighty acres may be held or controlled, directly or indirectly, under phosphate lease, and option, in the entire United States.

Provides that a lease for a leasable mineral subject to this title shall be for a term of twenty years and for so long thereafter as that leasable mineral is produced annually in paying quantities from one or more leases in approved logical mining units and upon such other terms and conditions, including rents and royalties, as the Secretary may prescribe.

Title IV: Construction Minerals - Authorizes the head of any Federal agency with surface jurisdiction of leasable lands, under such regulations as he may prescribe, to issue leases for the exploration, development, and production for the sale, at fair market value, of construction minerals in the leasable lands under his jurisdiction if such leasing or sale is not expressly prohibited by other laws of the United States, and is not detrimental to the public interest. Provides that all leases and, except as provided in this title, all contracts for sales shall be granted to the highest responsible qualified bidder, under general regulations issued by the Secretary.

Declares that the head of any Federal agency, in his discretion, may permit any Federal agency or any State, or agency or subdivision of a State, or any other nonprofit association or corporation to develop and produce, without charge, construction minerals for other than industrial or commercial use or purposes of resale from leasable lands the surface of which is under his jurisdiction.

Title V: Hard Rock Minerals - Provides that not more than twenty thousand four hundred and eighty acres may be held or controlled under hard rock mineral leases by a person in any one State. States that the maximum area which may be included in any one hard rock mineral lease is six hundred and forty acres.

Provides that a hard rock mineral exploration lease shall be issued for a period of ten years and shall cover all hard rock minerals in the land subject to the lease and such lease will be subject to such rental, royalty, and other conditions as the Secretary may prescribe.

States that at any time before the end of the ten-year period a production lease may be issued to the exploration lessee, if he shows, to the satisfaction of the Secretary, that he has discovered on the leased lands minerals of such quantity and quality as to justify commercial development and production.

Declares that in no lease issued under this title shall the royalty required be less than 3 percent of the gross value, as determined by the Secretary, of all commercial production under the lease at the point of shipment to market.