Four recent executive actions build on the Trump Administration’s efforts to secure critical minerals and materials for American national and economic security. Two of the actions create incentives – including tariff relief – for manufacturers to onshore production of aluminum and polysilicon. Another limits defense contractors’ use of waivers allowing them to source certain minerals and products from China and other “non-allied nations.” The fourth empowers the Secretary of Commerce to use the Defense Production Act to limit exports of critical minerals and materials contained in manufacturing residues, discarded electronics, and other products.
Aug. 7, 2026, State Department Mining Roundtable
The President topped off this period of focus on critical minerals and materials at a State Department-hosted roundtable, where he met with mining executives and announced over $2 billion of new U.S. investments in companies producing critical minerals and materials, and in 17 U.S. mining and workforce training schools. All but one of the new investments are for U.S.-based projects; the exception – an investment of $4.8 million – is for a rare-earths mine in Madagascar that is expected to supply American manufacturing. Minerals and materials to be produced include refractory-grade bauxite, rare-earth free permanent magnets, silicon-carbon battery anodes, lithium-ion battery cells, boron, graphite, tantalum, niobium, and scandium and other rare earths.
Aug. 6, 2026, Presidential Proclamation – Adjusting Imports of Polysilicon and Its Derivatives into the United States
The proclamation follows the Commerce Department’s investigation, pursuant to section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, into the effects of imports of polysilicon and its derivative products on U.S. national security. As a result of the investigation’s findings, this proclamation establishes a minimum import price (MIP) program for imports of polysilicon and its derivatives, imposes a 15% ad valorem tariff rate on imports of polysilicon derivatives, and provides the Secretary of Commerce with the authority to enter into company-specific deals with producers of polysilicon to incentivize investments that strengthen the U.S. polysilicon industry. Importantly, in executing these deals, the Secretary may allow the company to import necessary equipment and products commensurate with the company’s committed domestic investment, without paying applicable 232 tariffs for the duration of the project’s construction.
The combination of the MIP, the additional 15% ad valorem tariff, and onshoring incentives aim to equalize the polysilicon market and promote domestic production of polysilicon derivatives. The proclamation further empowers the commerce secretary and U.S. Trade Representative to adjust the applicability of the MIP and established tariff rate for trading partners that adopt “substantially equivalent import-adjusting action” to the MIP program. Similarly, the Secretary may adjust the MIP as market conditions change.
For polysilicon and polysilicon derivatives entering the United States, the following MIP applies:
- $21 per kilogram for polysilicon;
- $100 per kilogram for polysilicon ingots and wafers;
- $0.22 per watt for solar cells; and
- $0.38 per watt for solar modules.
For further information regarding the applicability of the minimum import price and 15% ad valorem tariff on polysilicon and polysilicon derivatives, please see the associated Annex I and Annex II to this proclamation. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is responsible for implementing the MIP program, which includes its monitoring and enforcement. Pursuant to this proclamation, the Secretary and other executive branch officials may make changes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule and take other actions to effectuate this proclamation through notices in the Federal Register.
July 30, 2026, Presidential Determination – Export Restrictions Pursuant to the Defense Production Act
The “Presidential Determination Pursuant to Section 101 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as Amended, on Recoverable Critical Minerals,” declares that “recoverable critical minerals and materials” (CMMs) are “scarce and critical materials,” and that national defense needs cannot be met without exercising authority over CMMs in the civilian market. The determination delegates the president’s Defense Production Act authority to the Secretary of Commerce, empowering him to institute export controls. The Secretary of Commerce must issue regulations, rules, guidance, and procedures to exercise the delegated authority.
CMMs are defined to include a variety of end-of-life materials including “black mass” (derived from crushing used lithium-ion batteries), rare-earth permanent magnets or other goods “that have fully completed the manufacturing process,” “swarf” (particles, chips, or shavings left over from cutting, grinding, drilling, or shaping materials), and other waste or scrap containing critical minerals and materials. The terms “critical minerals and materials” are defined broadly to include critical materials designated by the Secretary of Energy, critical minerals designated by the Secretary of the Interior, strategic and critical materials designated by the Secretary of Defense, minerals as defined in Executive Order 14241 (March 20, 2025) (including gold or any other mineral designated by the Chair of the National Energy Dominance Council), and any other mineral or material designated by the Secretary of Commerce.
July 20, 2026, Executive Order 14415 - Defense Supply Chains
The order, entitled “Securing America’s Defense Supply Chains and Ensuring Domestic Acquisition of Critical Materials,” calls out defense contractors who have “historically under-prioritized domestic production and resilience” in their acquisition of certain critical materials. Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, the Secretary of Defense may no longer use the waiver provisions of 10 U.S.C. § 4872, which restricts purchases of certain rare-earth magnets, tungsten metal powder, tungsten heavy alloy (or components containing it), tantalum metals and alloys, and molybdenum from Russia, China, North Korea, or Iran. Waivers may still be available, but only if (1) the Department of Defense (DOD) submits a waiver request to the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, or (2) if the contractor first submits a “mitigation plan.” The mitigation plan must document evidence of “exhaustive” efforts to acquire a material or component domestically or from an allied nation, or document that such “compliant” materials are not available. The mitigation plan also must document steps, including a timeline, the contractor will take to remove “non-compliant” materials from its supply chains.
Deadlines
- Within 90 days, the Secretary must develop a strategy to accelerate testing and qualification of new sources of critical materials and components from domestic sources or from allied nations.
- Within 180 days, the Secretary must develop policy and implementation guidance requiring all contractors to map critical supply chains for all DOD acquisitions that implicate national security, followed by regulations to be promulgated within a further 90 days. The regulations must require contractors to assess supply chain risks, including financial, foreign ownership, control or influence, and manufacturing and supply, and to implement timely mitigation plans to reduce risks.
- Within 180 days, the Secretary must identify all existing acquisitions that “support, implicate, or relate” to national security, and require affected contractors who source materials or components from “unreliable foreign supplier[s]” to qualify alternatives as soon as possible, unless no alternative is available.
- Every six months, the Secretary must report on progress implementing the executive order.
Unlike the earlier provisions of the order limiting waivers for specific materials 10 U.S.C. § 4872 covers, these strategies, policies, and regulations apply more broadly to “raw materials” in supply chains for components, parts, equipment, software, and other materials. The order does not define “critical minerals,” “critical materials,” or “raw materials.”
July 20, 2026, Presidential Proclamation – Incentives for Onshoring Primary Aluminum Production
The proclamation updated previous presidential actions that found aluminum imports endangered national security and established or adjusted tariffs on aluminum imports, including Proclamation 9704, issued March 8, 2018, and Proclamation 11021, issued April 2, 2026. The current tariff on primary aluminum products is 50%. The new proclamation responds to the Secretary of Commerce’s findings that, “despite the benefits from the aluminum tariff regime,” domestic production of primary aluminum is still insufficient to meet demand. The proclamation describes an onshoring incentive plan, implemented by the Secretary of Commerce, which would reduce tariffs on primary aluminum imports from 50% to 25% for companies that agree to build, refurbish, or expand a domestic primary aluminum production facility, with a construction start no later than Jan. 20, 2029. The 50% reduction would apply only to the quantity of primary aluminum imports corresponding to the promised U.S. production facility’s reasonably anticipated annual output. See a July 2026 GT Alert for further details.
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