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Former Santa Clarita Valley Congressman Buck McKeon
Former Santa Clarita Valley Congressman Buck McKeon

McKeon Reintroduces Cemex Bill To House

Congressman Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, re-introduced a Cemex bill to help stop a longterm sand and gravel mine just outside of the eastern border of Santa Clarita.


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H.R. 5742, introduced Wednesday, is expected to have similar language to one already introduced by Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., requiring feds to cancel Cemex’s mining contracts in Soledad Canyon in exchange for the proceeds from the sale of land in Victorville. Boxer introduced her bill Tuesday.

Related: Boxer Reintroduces Cemex Bill To Stop Santa Clarita Valley Mine

McKeon’s bill was referred Wednesday to the House Committee on Natural Resources.

Cemex owns two mining contracts for Soledad Canyon, each 10 years in length, which would yield about 56 million tons of usable aggregate — a total of 78 million tons of the material used to make gravel and concrete — over the next 20 years.

The legislation would require the Bureau of Land Management to cancel current mining contracts in Soledad Canyon and prohibit future mining at the site.

Santa Clarita officials testified about a similar bill earlier this year.

Related: Santa Clarita Mayor To Testify On Cemex Bill By Boxer

McKeon has said past version of the bill wouldn’t pass in the House due to a ban on earmark. However, Boxer’s version earned a zero score from the Congressional Budget Office, meaning it won’t have a cost for taxpayers.

Federal officials testified recently that the canyon has the potential to produce 356 million tons of sand and gravel, meaning Cemex’ $28 million worth of contracts are a fraction of the land’s half-billion-dollar potential.

From a previous story:

Boxer reintroduced the Soledad Canyon Settlement Act that would resolve the 15-year-long mining dispute between the city of Santa Clarita and Cemex USA, officials said Tuesday.

The legislation would require the Bureau of Land Management to cancel current mining contracts inSoledad Canyon and prohibit future mining at the site.

In a letter to Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Jack Reed (D-RI) and Ranking Member Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Boxer said, “Today, I am reintroducing The Soledad Canyon Settlement Act with changes that will result in a zero score from the Congressional Budget Office. The expected cost was a crucial impediment against moving forward with this legislation.”

The legislation was updated to make clear that it will have no cost to the federal government or taxpayers.

“By ensuring that this bill will have no cost to the government or taxpayers, I believe we have increased our chances of passing it,”  Boxer said. “This legislation has the support of the city of Santa Clarita andCemez USA, and I am hopeful that we can work with both Republicans and Democrats in Congress to resolve this decades-long dispute and protect the people of the Santa Clarita Valley from pollution and traffic congestion.”

Senator Boxer is also sending a letter to Reed and Murkowski, requesting that the provisions of her bill be included in the Interior Appropriations bill if it is passed in this Congress. In addition, she sent a letter to Environment and Natural Resources Chairman Mary Landrieu and Murkowski asking for their support for the legislation as well.

In 2007, the city of Santa Clarita and Cemex USA announced that they would seek a compromise agreement that would avoid mining in Soledad Canyon while compensating Cemex USA for the value of the mining contracts.

“I’m extremely pleased to hear about the bill being reintroduced,” said Councilman Bob Kellar. “There have been some minor changes made to the bill. I’m extremely excited about this news. It’s not out of the question to get it through by the end of the year, if not the bill will move forward into the next session.”

Boxer’s bill, which has the strong support of Santa Clarita officials, would implement a balanced solution. The bill directs the BLM to cancel Cemex USA’s sand and gravel mining leases at Soledad Canyon and withdraw this site from future mining. The bill calls for the BLM to sell lands near Victorville, California that have already been identified for disposal and use the proceeds to compensate Cemex USA for the canceled contracts.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reviewed the revised language in the bill and concluded that it has a zero score. The measure would ensure that no cost would be incurred by the taxpayers to complete the agreement to cancel Cemex USA’s mining leases – either before or after the sale of the BLM lands.

Santa Clarita officials recently sent a letter to the Administration expressing their interest in donating the mine property to the federal government to serve as a gateway point for the recently designated San Gabriel Mountains National Monument, as the mine sits directly on the new monument’s northwestern boundary.  However, the mining dispute would first need to be resolved before the city could donate the property.

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KHTS AM 1220 - Santa Clarita Radio

McKeon Reintroduces Cemex Bill To House

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.