A Missouri House bill aims to take the state’s critical mineral industry to the bank.
State Rep. Mike Steinmeyer, R-Sugar Creek, is proposing to create a statewide task force to focus on Missouri’s profitable earth that is imperative in electronics, cars, computer applications, lighting, energy, and several other things. Critical minerals are vital for modern devices, national security, and making technology function.
“The state of Missouri needs to be looking at how we’re going to be leaders of cutting-edge industry, utilities and nuclear power, and then, of course, with the critical minerals,” Steinmeyer told Missourinet.
The state has 36 of the nation’s 60 critical minerals, including copper, silver, cobalt, lead, and zinc.
“Many of the minerals are located in parts of Missouri that needs jobs. They need investment,” he said. “They need long term stability, and then the other side of it, which is important, is there’s the high-skill, high-wage jobs without chasing subsidies.”
State and federal grants could be on the horizon to get the ball rolling on Missouri’s industry.
“Missouri is not going to have to start from zero, and really this is a value-added bill. It’s just not extraction. This has a long-term economic impact and really invest not just in the economy, but it invests in people,” he said.
Steinmeyer said the state would have safety and environmental regulations for the industry to follow.
“The very good part of this is the University of Missouri system is already talking about the workforce demands, the skills. They are looking at how do we train a workforce-ready opportunity for people coming out of college and high school systems that can be ready to transition into these types of facilities and these types of jobs,” he said.
Steinmeyer told Missourinet he is not in the industry. He said his interest comes from being on the Independence City Council – a city with a public utility. Although the industries are different, Steinmeyer said both are critical in nature.
“It’s Missouri thinking long-term. We’re protecting taxpayers, we’re strengthening supply chains and we’re positioning our state as a national leader instead of a bystander. Not just defense systems, but we need them for medical equipment to energy infrastructure. They all depend on these minerals,” he said.
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