Hard Rock Mining | Notice of Adoption of MAR Notice No. 2026-853.2 | Public Notice
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has recently completed the rulemaking process for the Administrative Rules of Montana (ARM) applicable to the Metal Mine Reclamation Act. The rule package includes one new rule, amendments to nine rules, and the repeal of one rule. The updates implement House Bill 69, enacted by the 69th Montana Legislature in 2025, which revised hard rock mining and exploration fees under Title 82, chapter 4, part 3, Montana Code Annotated (MCA). DEQ is also adopting a definition to clarify the status of material subject to permitting requirements, and definitions to implement the exploration license modifications included in HB 69. The adopted rules also improve the readability of the Hard Rock Mining rules for enhanced communication to regulated entities and stakeholders.
Previous notices were provided via e-mail and the DEQ website, regarding Montana Administrative Register (MAR) Notice No. 2026-853. The proposed rule notice was published in MAR Issue 9 on May 8, 2026, and it included a public hearing in Helena on June 3, 2026, and a public comment period that extended from May 8, 2026, through June 5, 2026. The final adoption notice for the publication of MAR Notice No. 2026-853.2 and the implementation of the rules was provided on September 25, 2026, with the new rules taking effect on September 26, 2026.
DEQ did receive written public comments. DEQ’s summary of the comments received, and DEQ’s responses are in MAR Notice No. 2026-853.2.
Associated Materials:
MAR Notice 2026-853.2Tags: Public Notice, Hard Rock and Rule Making