Integration of Baseball Commemorative Coin Act
This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue $5 gold coins, $1 silver coins, and half-dollar clad coins in recognition and celebration of the 75th anniversary of the integration of the game of baseball.
All sales of such coins shall include specified surcharges. All surcharges received by Treasury shall be distributed to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, with the understanding that the Hall of Fame shall work with the Jackie Robinson Foundation to develop and operate education programs about the integration of the game of baseball and to preserve artifacts related to the integration of the game.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1954 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1954
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemorative coins in
recognition of the 75th anniversary of the integration of baseball.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 25, 2019
Mr. Scott of South Carolina (for himself, Mr. Booker, Mr. Boozman, and
Mrs. Capito) 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 commemorative coins in
recognition of the 75th anniversary of the integration of baseball.
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 ``Integration of Baseball
Commemorative Coin Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) On April 15, 1947, future Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson
changed the landscape of the national pastime and the United
States when he stepped onto the grass at Ebbets Field as the
starting first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the first
African American to play Major League Baseball in the modern
era.
(2) On July 5, 1947, future Hall of Famer Larry Doby took
his first at bat for the Cleveland Indians, ending the color
barrier in the American League forever.
(3) The integration of Major League Baseball in 1947 is
recognized today as a seminal moment in the Civil Rights
Movement and American history.
(4) The integration of Major League Baseball preceded the
landmark Supreme Court of the United States ruling in Brown v.
Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), by 7 years and the
enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Public Law 88-352;
78 Stat. 241) by 17 years.
(5) The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and the
Jackie Robinson Foundation are dedicated to telling the story
of baseball's unique role in helping end racial segregation and
advancing civil rights in the United States.
SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.
(a) Shape and Surface Treatment.--All coins issued pursuant to this
Act shall be square, with the design corner-aligned, shall be finished
on the reverse with ``enhanced uncirculated'' treatment, and shall be
of approximately the same size. The Secretary of the Treasury (referred
to in this Act as the ``Secretary''), at the Secretary's discretion,
may also use the ``enhanced uncirculated'' treatment on the coin
obverse.
(b) Denominations.--In recognition and celebration of the 75th
anniversary of the integration of baseball, the Secretary shall mint
and issue the following coins:
(1) $5 gold coins.--Not more than 50,000 $5 coins, which
shall--
(A) weigh 1 ounce;
(B) be struck on a planchet of appropriate
dimensions; and
(C) contain not less than 90 percent gold.
(2) $1 silver coins.--Not more than 500,000 $1 coins, which
shall--
(A) weigh 26.73 grams;
(B) be struck on a planchet of appropriate
dimensions; and
(C) contain not less than 90 percent silver.
(3) Half-dollar clad coins.--Not more than 750,000 half-
dollar coins, which shall be of such specifications as the
Secretary may choose, except that, to the greatest extent
possible, such half-dollar coins shall match in size the other
coins described in this subsection.
(c) Legal Tender.--The coins minted under this Act shall be legal
tender, as provided in section 5103 of title 31, United States Code.
(d) 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) In General.--The design for the coins minted under this Act
shall be--
(1) selected by the Secretary after consultation with--
(A) the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum;
and
(B) the Commission of Fine Arts; and
(2) reviewed by the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory
Committee.
(b) Designations and Inscriptions.--On each coin minted under this
Act there shall be--
(1) a designation of the value of the coin, which, for
purposes of the coins described under paragraphs (1) and (2) of
section 3(b) shall use a dollar sign and a numeral rather than
spelling out the denomination;
(2) an inscription of the year ``2022''; and
(3) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God We
Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E Pluribus Unum''.
(c) Common Reverse Design.--The design on the common reverse of the
coins minted under this Act shall depict a baseball diamond similar to
those used by Major League Baseball.
(d) Selection and Approval Process for Obverse Design.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall hold a competition to
determine the design of the common obverse of the coins minted
under this Act, with such design being emblematic of the
integration of the game of baseball.
(2) Selection and approval.--Proposals for the design of
coins minted under this Act may be submitted in accordance with
the design selection and approval process developed by the
Secretary in the sole discretion of the Secretary. The
Secretary shall encourage 3-dimensional models to be submitted
as part of the design proposals.
(3) Proposals.--As part of the competition described in
this subsection, the Secretary may accept proposals from
artists, engravers of the United States Mint, and members of
the general public, and shall endeavor to publicize the design
contest to participants in youth baseball programs.
(4) Compensation.--The Secretary shall determine
compensation for the winning design under this subsection,
which shall be not less than $5,000. The Secretary shall take
into account this compensation amount when determining the sale
price described in section 6(a).
SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS.
(a) Quality of Coins.--Coins minted under this Act shall be issued
in uncirculated and proof qualities.
(b) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins minted
under this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1,
2022.
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
such coins; and
(3) the cost of designing and issuing the coins (including
labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, winning design
compensation, 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 such
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 minted under this Act shall
include a surcharge as follows:
(1) A surcharge of $50 per coin for the $5 coin.
(2) A surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 coin.
(3) A surcharge of $5 per coin for the half-dollar 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 promptly paid by the Secretary to
the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, with the understanding
that the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum shall work with the
Jackie Robinson Foundation, so that the 2 organizations may develop and
operate education programs about the integration of baseball and
preserve artifacts related to the integration of baseball.
(c) Audits.--The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum 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).
(d) Limitation.--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 such issuance, the
issuance of such coin would result in the number of commemorative coin
programs issued during such year to exceed the annual commemorative
coin program issuance limitation under section 5112(m)(1) of title 31,
United States Code (as in effect on the date of the enactment of this
Act). The Secretary of the Treasury may issue guidance to carry out
this subsection.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
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