Coal Cleanup Taxpayer Protection Act of 2026

This bill amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to protect taxpayers from liability for reclaiming surface coal mining operations by tightening bonding requirements.

Sec. 2, Surface coal mining bonding: This section replaces the existing alternative bonding system with one that requires a state to submit a report to the Secretary before approval, including a 7-year history of bond forfeitures and reclamation costs, and a 5-year forecast proving the proposed bond pool is financially sound. It also prohibits the Secretary from accepting self-bonds in federal programs and requires existing self-bonds to be replaced by permit renewal or major modification. State programs must be amended to remove self-bonding authority within 90 days, with existing self-bonds replaced by the same deadlines. The Secretary must issue rules within one year limiting surety bonds to minimize financial risk to governments, including caps on bonds from one surety, minimum reinsurance, collateralization, and cash asset requirements; existing corporate surety bonds must be modified or replaced within one year of the rule. Collateral for bonds cannot include coal, coal mines, related land, processing facilities, waste sites, equipment unlikely to retain value, or other property determined by the Secretary; nonliquid collateral must be re-evaluated every three years. The Secretary may require executive compensation of an applicant and affiliates as collateral.