Federal · Title 30 — Mineral Lands and Mining

30 U.S.C. § 1717: Hearings and investigations

Civil

What this law says, in plain English

This statute grants the Secretary authority to conduct investigations and hearings by requiring sworn statements, witness testimony, and document production. Failure to comply with court-ordered compliance may be punished as contempt with penalties up to $10,000 daily.

Read the full statutory text
to require by special or general order, any person to submit in writing such affidavits and answers to questions as the Secretary may reasonably prescribe, which submission shall be made within such reasonable period and under oath or otherwise, as may be necessary; to administer oaths; to require by subpena the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of all books, papers, production and financial records, documents, matter, and materials, as the Secretary may request; to order testimony to be taken by deposition before any person who is designated by the Secretary and who has the power to administer oaths, and to compel testimony and the production of evidence in the same manner as authorized under paragraph (3) of this subsection; and to pay witnesses the same fees and mileage as are paid in like circumstances in the courts of the United States. In case of refusal to obey a subpena served upon any person under this section, the district court of the United States for any district in which such person is found, resides, or transacts business, upon application by the Attorney General at the request of the Secretary and after notice to such person, shall have jurisdiction to issue an order requiring such person to appear and give testimony before the Secretary or to appear and produce documents before the Secretary. Any failure to obey such order of the court may be punished by such court as contempt thereof and subject to a penalty of up to $10,000 a day.

Verify at the official source: Federal legislative text

Facing this? Know exactly what happens next.

MOFRD turns this code section into your situation: the deadlines that apply to you, the forms your county uses, and the resolution paths people in your position actually take. Free for 3 days — no card required.

This page is legal information, not legal advice. Code text is sourced from official publications and may lag amendments — always confirm at the official source linked above. Plain-English summaries and relationship data are AI-derived and reviewed on an ongoing basis; verify with a licensed attorney before acting.