Title 30 — Mineral Lands and MiningRelease 119-73not60

§541 Entry and Location; Filing of Copy of Notice of Mining Location; Report and Payment for Lignite Mined; Mineral Patents; Reservation of Minerals to United States

Title 30 › Chapter 12A— ENTRY AND LOCATION ON COAL LANDS ON DISCOVERY OF SOURCE MATERIAL › § 541

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Public lands known or classified as coal and open for mining can be claimed under the mining laws if someone finds valuable source material in a seam or deposit of lignite, but this is subject to the chapter’s rules and any valid prior rights. The person claiming must file a copy of their notice in the Bureau of Land Management state land office within 90 days of locating the claim. They must also report each year to the Mining Supervisor of the Geological Survey how much lignite was mined or stripped to recover the source material and pay 10 cents per ton. Any mineral patents must follow the filing and payment rules above and must reserve to the United States all minerals covered by the Mineral Leasing Act except lignite that actually contains the valuable source material and lignite that must be removed to recover it. Claims and patents do not give rights to lignite that does not contain the source material except as needed to get the source material, and lode claims do not include extralateral rights. The terms “source material” and “lignite” are defined in section 541e.

Full Legal Text

Title 30, §541

Mineral Lands and Mining — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Subject to the conditions and provisions of this chapter and to any valid intervening rights acquired under the laws of the United States, public lands of the United States classified as or known to be valuable for coal subject to disposition under the mineral leasing laws and which are open to location and entry subject to the conditions and provisions of chapter 12 of this title, unless embraced within a coal prospecting permit or lease, shall also be open to location and entry under the mining laws of the United States upon the discovery of a valuable source material occurring within any seam, bed, or deposit of lignite in such lands: Provided, That a copy of the notice of any mining location made for source material occurring in any such bed, seam, or deposit, shall be filed for record in the land office of the Bureau of Land Management for the State in which the claim is situated within ninety days after the date of its location: Provided further, That the claimant to any such mining location shall report annually to the Mining Supervisor of the Geological Survey the amount of lignite mined or stripped in the recovery of such valuable source material during each calendar year and tender payment to him of 10 cents per ton thereon. Any mineral patents issued hereunder shall be made subject to the recording and payment requirements of this section and shall contain a reservation to the United States of all Leasing Act minerals owned by the United States other than lignite containing valuable source material and lignite necessary to be stripped or mined in the recovery of such material. Mining claims located and mineral patents issued under the provisions of this chapter shall not include rights to lignite not containing valuable source material except to the extent it may be necessary to mine or strip such lignite in order to mine the source material and, with respect to lode claims, shall not include extralateral rights. For all purposes of this chapter “source material” and “lignite” shall have the meanings given in section 541e of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

30 U.S.C. § 541

Title 30 — Mineral Lands and Mining

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60