Texas could turn a West Texas rare earth deposit into a major source of school funding while reducing America’s reliance on China for critical minerals, Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham (R) said on Let’s Talk Local.
Round Top Mountain in Hudspeth County sits on state-owned land. Its development could connect two priorities Buckingham outlined in her interview with host Sarah Zubiate Bennett: securing essential materials at home and putting Texas resources to work for public education.
China’s grip on critical materials
China accounted for 91% of global refining output for magnet rare earths in 2024, according to the International Energy Agency. That figure concerns processing, rather than ownership of all rare earth deposits.
“Well, your cell phones need rare earth minerals to work and jets require tons of them to fly,” Buckingham said in the interview.
Buckingham described domestic production as a national security priority and said she pushed prospective developers to compete rather than take the minerals to China for processing.
USA Rare Earth targets late 2028 for commercial production at Round Top. The company identifies processing facilities in Colorado and its magnet manufacturing facility in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
A potential payoff for Texas schools
Bonus payments and royalties from the state’s Round Top lease go to the Permanent School Fund, which supports K-12 public education, according to the General Land Office.
“We think it’ll be tens of billions of dollars,” Buckingham said when asked about potential school-fund revenue. She also estimated the deposit could supply minerals for about 100 years.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Buckingham has linked revenue from state resources to public school funding and the burden on property owners.
The conversation also explores why she wants Texas to retain its land and how development could reshape the surrounding community.
Watch here for Buckingham’s explanation of the Round Top opportunity and what it could mean for Texas schools and American independence from China.
Provided by Dallas Express
