US HB588

Permanently withdraws approximately 225,504 acres of federal land and waters in the Rainy River Watershed of Minnesota's Superior National Forest from mining claims, mineral leasing, and public land disposal

Protects the 1,090,000-acre Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which contains nearly 2,000 lakes, 1,200 miles of canoe routes, and 1,500 cultural resource sites including historic Ojibwe village sites

Codifies the January 2023 Interior Department decision (Public Land Order 7917) to block copper-nickel sulfide mining that could cause acid mine drainage and contaminate waters flowing into Voyageurs National Park and Canada

Allows the Forest Service Chief to permit removal of sand, gravel, granite, iron ore, and taconite if determined not detrimental to water quality, air quality, and forest habitat

Cites economic analysis projecting the mining ban would generate 1,500 to 4,600 additional jobs and $100 million to $900 million more income over 20 years through tourism and amenity-based industries