World War I American Veterans Centennial Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) mint and issue $1 silver coins to commemorate the centennial of the involvement of the United States in World War I, and (2) hold a competition and provide compensation for its winner to design the obverse and reverse of the coins.
Requires the design of such coins to be emblematic of the centennial of the involvement of the United States in World War I.
Permits the Secretary to issue such coins only during the period beginning on January 1, 2018, and ending on December 31, 2018.
Subjects the coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin, payable by the Secretary to the World War I Centennial Commission.
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2714 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2714
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration
of the centennial of World War I.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 31, 2014
Mr. Blunt (for himself and Mrs. McCaskill) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration
of the centennial of World War I.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``World War I American Veterans
Centennial Commemorative Coin Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) the year 2018 is the 100th anniversary of the signing
of the armistice with Germany ending World War I battlefield
hostilities;
(2) on April 6, 1917, the United States entered World War I
by declaring war against Germany;
(3) 2,000,000 American soldiers served overseas during
World War I;
(4) more than 4,000,000 men and women from the United
States served in uniform during World War I;
(5) the events of 1914 through 1918 shaped the world and
the lives of millions of people for decades;
(6) more than 9,000,000 soldiers worldwide lost their lives
between 1914 and 1918;
(7) the centennial of the involvement of the United States
in World War I offers an opportunity for people in the United
States to commemorate the commitment of their predecessors;
(8) Frank Buckles, the last American veteran from World War
I, died on February 27, 2011;
(9) Mr. Buckles was the last direct American link to the
``war to end all wars'';
(10) while other great conflicts, including the Civil War,
World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, have all
been memorialized on United States commemorative coins, there
currently is no coin to honor the brave veterans of World War
I; and
(11) the 112th Congress established the World War I
Centennial Commission to plan, develop, and execute programs,
projects, and activities to commemorate the centennial of World
War I.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to--
(1) commemorate the centennial of the involvement of the
United States in World War I; and
(2) honor the more than 4,000,000 men and women from the
United States who served during World War I.
SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.
(a) $1 Silver Coins.--The Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in
this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall mint and issue not
more than 350,000 $1 coins to commemorate the centennial of the
involvement of the United States in World War I, each of which shall--
(1) weigh 26.73 grams;
(2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
(3) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper.
(b) Legal Tender.--The coins minted under this Act shall be legal
tender, as provided in section 5103 of title 31, United States Code.
(c) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of
title 31, United States Code, all coins minted under this Act shall be
considered to be numismatic items.
SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS.
(a) Design Requirements.--
(1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this
Act shall be emblematic of the centennial of the involvement of
the United States in World War I.
(2) Designation and inscriptions.--On each coin minted
under this Act, there shall be--
(A) a designation of the value of the coin;
(B) an inscription of the year ``2018''; and
(C) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God
We Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E
Pluribus Unum''.
(b) Selection.--The design for the coins minted under this Act
shall be selected by the Secretary based on the winning design from a
design competition described in subsection (c).
(c) Design Competition.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall hold a competition and
provide compensation for the winner of the contest to design
the obverse and reverse of the coins minted under this Act.
(2) Manner of competition.--The competition required by
this subsection shall be held in the following manner:
(A) The competition shall be judged by an expert
jury--
(i) chaired by the Secretary; and
(ii) consisting of--
(I) 3 members from the Citizens
Coinage Advisory Committee, who shall
be elected by the Committee; and
(II) 3 members from the Commission
of Fine Arts, who shall be elected by
the Commission.
(B) The Secretary shall determine compensation for
the winning design, which shall be not less than
$5,000.
(C) The Secretary may not accept a design for the
competition unless a plaster model accompanies the
design.
SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS.
(a) Quality of Coins.--Coins minted under this Act shall be issued
in uncirculated and proof qualities.
(b) Mint Facility.--Only 1 facility of the United States Mint may
be used to strike any particular quality of the coins minted under this
Act.
(c) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins under this
Act only during the period beginning on January 1, 2018, and ending on
December 31, 2018.
SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.
(a) Sale Price.--The coins issued under this Act shall be sold by
the Secretary at a price equal to the sum of--
(1) the face value of the coins;
(2) the surcharge provided in section 7(a) with respect to
the coins; and
(3) the cost of designing and issuing the coins (including
labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead expenses,
marketing, and shipping).
(b) Bulk Sales.--The Secretary shall make bulk sales of the coins
issued under this Act at a reasonable discount.
(c) Prepaid Orders.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall accept prepaid orders
for the coins minted under this Act before the issuance of the
coins.
(2) Discount.--Sale prices with respect to prepaid orders
under paragraph (1) shall be at a reasonable discount.
SEC. 7. SURCHARGES.
(a) In General.--All sales of coins issued under this Act shall
include a surcharge of $10 per coin.
(b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United
States Code, all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of
coins issued under this Act shall be paid by the Secretary to the World
War I Centennial Commission, consistent with section 8.
(c) Unused Funds Upon Termination.--If, upon the termination of the
World War I Centennial Commission, there remains a balance of funds
from surcharges received from the Secretary pursuant to this section,
the Commission shall transfer the funds to the general fund of the
Treasury.
(d) Audits.--The World War I Commission shall be subject to the
audit requirements of section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States
Code, with regard to the amounts received under subsection (b).
(e) Limitation.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), no
surcharge may be included with respect to the issuance under
this Act of any coin during a calendar year if, as of the time
of the issuance, the issuance of the coin would result in the
number of commemorative coin programs issued during the
calendar year to exceed the annual 2 commemorative coin program
issuance limitation under section 5112(m)(1) of title 31,
United States Code.
(2) Guidance.--The Secretary may issue guidance to carry
out this subsection.
SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES.
The Secretary shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure
that--
(1) minting and issuing coins under this Act will not
result in any net cost to the United States Government; and
(2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, shall be
disbursed to any recipient designated in section 7 until the
total cost of designing and issuing all of the coins authorized
by this Act (including labor, materials, dies, use of
machinery, overhead expenses, marketing, and shipping) is
recovered by the United States Treasury, consistent with
sections 5112(m) and 5134(f) of title 31, United States Code.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
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