1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Bond Improvement and Reclamation Assurance Act . 2. Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 reform (a) Permit performance bonds Section 509 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 ( 30 U.S.C. 1259 ) is amended— (1) in subsection (a), to read as follows: (a) (1) After a surface coal mining and reclamation permit application has been approved but before such a permit is issued, the applicant shall file with the regulatory authority, on a form prescribed and furnished by the regulatory authority, a bond for performance payable, as appropriate, to the United States or to the State, and conditional upon faithful performance of all the requirements of this Act and the permit. (2) The bond shall cover that area of land within the permit area upon which the operator will initiate and conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations within the initial term of the permit. (3) As succeeding increments of surface coal mining and reclamation operations are to be initiated and conducted within the permit area, the permittee shall file with the regulatory authority an additional bond to cover such increments in accordance with this section. (4) The amount of the bond required for each bonded area shall— (A) be determined by the regulatory authority; (B) depend upon the reclamation requirements of the approved permit; (C) reflect the probable difficulty of reclamation giving consideration to factors including topography, geology of the site, hydrology, and revegetation potential; (D) be sufficient to ensure the completion of the reclamation plan if the work had to be performed by the regulatory authority in the event of bond forfeiture