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Utah's Critical Minerals Strategic Act builds a new state framework to expand the mining and processing of "critical minerals" — materials like lithium, copper, and rare earth elements deemed important to the economy or national security. The bill creates a Critical Minerals Council to develop a statewide strategic plan, designate "critical minerals zones," and oversee a new research hub called the Minerals for Industrial, National, and Economic Security Center, while requiring the Department of Environmental Quality and the Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining to prioritize and speed up permitting for qualifying projects, including issuing permits at the same time rather than one after another. It establishes a State Reinvestment Restricted Account funded by oil, gas, and mining severance tax revenue to support income tax relief, water infrastructure, transit, energy development, and critical minerals projects, along with a separate Critical Minerals Development Account funded partly through property tax revenue generated within designated zones. The bill also revises the tax credit available to companies exploring for new mineral deposits, allowing credits worth up to 50% of qualifying exploration costs (based on the lesser of that amount or 30% of severance tax liability), while lowering the per-mine cap from $20 million to $10 million (or up to $15 million for minerals the U.S. heavily imports, down from $30 million) and shortening the maximum credit period from 20 to 10 years; it also limits how exploration tax credits can be assigned to other parties and tightens the definition of qualifying exploration activity.