Amending Certain Sections Or Presidential Decree No. 463, Otherwise Known As The "Mineral Resources Development Decree Of 1974".

Case Overview and Summary

Summary of Presidential Decree No. 1385

Amending Certain Sections of Presidential Decree No. 463, the "Mineral Resources Development Decree of 1974"

I. Definitions (Section 1)
- Defines "minerals" to include soil, sand, gravel, guano, coal, petroleum, geothermal energy, and natural gas (Section 2(f))
- Defines "lessee" as a qualified person issued a mining lease contract by the Secretary (Section 2(o))
- Defines "claimowner" as a qualified person who has registered mining claims under previous mining laws or under the Decree (Section 2(g))

II. Mineral Reservations (Sections 2-4)
- The President may establish, alter, or revert mineral reservations upon recommendation of the Secretary (Section 6)
- Prospecting, exploration, and exploitation in reserved lands other than mineral reservations may be undertaken by government agencies or qualified persons (Section 8)
- Mineral reservations are closed to mining location and managed by the Mineral Reservations Development Board (Section 9)

III. Mining Claims and Locations (Sections 5-7, 11-13)
- Qualified persons may locate mining claims within public and private lands (Section 11)
- Entry into public and private lands for prospecting, exploration, and exploitation is allowed, subject to notice requirements (Section 12)
- Areas closed to mining location include military reservations, mineral reservations, lands with existing mining claims/leases, and areas near public/private works (Section 13)

IV. Declaration and Recording of Mining Claims (Sections 8-10, 15-16)
- Declaration of location of a mining claim must be filed with the Mining Regional Officer (Section 15)
- Recording of a valid declaration of location is ministerial for the Mining Recorder (Section 16)

V. Annual Work Obligations and Expenditures (Sections 14, 24-27)
- Claimowners/lessees must perform annual work obligations on mining claims, with specified minimum expenditures per hectare (Section 24)
- Work obligations may be concentrated on contiguous or geologically related claims (Section 25)
- Proof of compliance with annual work obligations must be submitted (Section 27)

VI. Mining Lease Contracts (Sections 17-21, 32-33, 40-44, 47)
- Claimowners may apply for a mines temporary permit pending issuance of a mining lease contract (Section 33)
- The Secretary shall issue mining lease contracts for up to 25 years, renewable for another 25 years (Section 40)
- Mining leases grant rights to extract minerals, use lands, and enter service contracts (Section 44)
- Service contracts with foreign contractors are subject to specific requirements (Section 44)
- Improvements on public lands must be removed within 1 year after lease termination (Section 47)

VII. Appeals and Disputes (Section 22, 50)
- Decisions of the Director may be appealed to the Secretary, and decisions of the Secretary may be appealed to the President (Section 50)
- Decisions are immediately executory unless the President directs otherwise (Section 50)

VIII. Penalties and Enforcement (Sections 23, 78, 94)
- Theft of minerals without a lease or permit is punishable by imprisonment and/or fine (Section 78)
- The Director shall appraise or evaluate mines for capital raising or asset valuation purposes (Section 94)

IX. Administrative Provisions (Sections 22-23)
- Positions of Mines Regional Recorders are created in every mining region (Section 22)
- The Secretary may establish new mining regions as needed (Section 23)