Congress Wants a $2.5 Billion Stockpile to Break China’s Grip on Critical Minerals

What Happened

A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation to create a Strategic Resilience Reserve for critical minerals. Senators Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Todd Young of Indiana are leading the effort with Representatives Rob Wittman of Virginia and John Moolenaar of Michigan. The SECURE Minerals Act would allocate $2.5 billion to build a national stockpile of rare earth elements and other materials essential to modern technology.

The reserve would operate as a hybrid of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and the Federal Reserve. A seven-member board appointed by the president would oversee operations, managing both physical storage facilities and financial mechanisms to stabilize prices.

China currently dominates production of these materials, controlling an average 70% market share across 19 of 20 key commodities in this sector. That dominance extends beyond mining to processing and manufacturing as well.

The country has used this leverage before, restricting exports to defense contractors and American technology companies during trade disputes. These minerals power everything from smartphones and electric vehicle batteries to advanced semiconductor chips and military equipment.

Lithium, cobalt, rare earth elements, and dozens of other materials fall under this umbrella. Modern economies cannot function without steady access to these resources.

Why It Matters

China spent decades investing in mining operations, processing facilities, and entire supply chains while the United States focused elsewhere. That investment is now paying geopolitical dividends.

When trade tensions escalated during Trump’s first term, China demonstrated its willingness to restrict mineral exports as economic leverage. Those restrictions exposed a strategic vulnerability that could cripple American manufacturing.

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This dependence creates some notable problems. If China cut off exports during a crisis, American manufacturing in key industries would grind to a halt within months.

The defense sector would face shortages for missiles, fighter jets, and communication systems. The automotive industry would struggle to produce electric vehicles. Tech companies couldn’t manufacture enough smartphones or computers to meet demand.

China can also flood global markets with cheap minerals when it suits its interests, making it economically impossible for American companies to compete. Domestic mining projects can’t justify massive upfront investments if Chinese producers can crash prices until competitors go bankrupt.

But if there was a strategic reserve in place, it could break that cycle by guaranteeing government purchases at stable prices, giving domestic producers the certainty they need to invest.

How It Affects You

Your smartphone, work computer, and electric vehicle all depend on rare earth elements and minerals processed primarily through Chinese supply chains. That same dependence extends into national defense, too.

Guided missiles need rare-earth magnets to function, and fighter jets rely on advanced alloys that trace back to the same supply chain vulnerabilities. If those supplies get cut off during a conflict, America's military capability starts degrading fast.

Industries built around critical minerals employ millions of Americans across automotive manufacturing, aerospace, technology, and renewable energy. When supply chains hiccup, factories slow down, people lose jobs, and products either cost more or disappear from shelves entirely. The proposed reserve is designed to stop that chain reaction before it starts.

What actually happens will depend on Congress passing the bill and the administration pushing it through. Shaheen and Young are crafting it as a national security imperative, and the $2.5 billion price tag looks pretty reasonable compared to what a major supply disruption would cost the economy.

Trump has been working this angle already as well, taking equity stakes in domestic mining companies and leaning on allies to ramp up their own production. This legislation would give him and whoever comes after him an actual mechanism to chip away at China's dominance while keeping American industry competitive.

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