[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1671 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1671

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
 of the acceptance of the responsibility of the Federal Government for 
the care and maintenance of the historic buildings in which the United 
           States of America and its Government were created.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 2, 1993

Mr. Foglietta introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
            Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
 of the acceptance of the responsibility of the Federal Government for 
the care and maintenance of the historic buildings in which the United 
           States of America and its Government were created.

    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 ``Independence Hall Commemorative Coin 
Act''.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) for 150 years, the historic buildings in Philadelphia, 
        Pennsylvania, known as Congress Hall, the Old City Hall, and 
        Independence Hall which housed the Liberty Bell, the symbol of 
        the heritage of free people in the United States, were under 
        the occasional care of local government units;
            (2) the Federal Government decided that it was its 
        responsibility to preserve and maintain these sites and others 
        related to it for generations of Americans alive and yet to be 
        born;
            (3) the recent years of financial exigency and growth of 
        the responsibility and sphere of service of the National Park 
        Service has prevented the ability to provide current capital 
        needs for these historic sites;
            (4) in 1994, the people of the United States will mark the 
        anniversary of the adoption of the National Park Service of the 
        responsibility for the care and maintenance of Independence 
        Hall, the Liberty Bell, and other historic buildings which were 
        the birthplace of the United States of America; and
            (5) the minting and issuance of a United States coin to 
        commemorate the ongoing maintenance and preservation of these 
        shrines is an appropriate method by which to commemorate this 
        action.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Issuance.--The Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act 
referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall issue not more than 1,000,000 
$1 coins 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) Design.--The design of the coins issued under subsection (a) 
shall be emblematic of the shrines of liberty and shall show the 
Liberty Bell on one side and the Independence Hall on the other. On 
each coin there shall be a designation of the value of the coin, an 
inscription of the year ``1994'', and inscription of the words 
``Liberty'', ``In God We Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E 
Pluribus Unum''.
    (c) Numismatic Items.--The coins issued under subsection (a) shall 
be numismatic items for purposes of section 5134 of title 31, United 
States Code.
    (d) Legal Tender.--The coins issued under subsection (a) shall be 
legal tender as provided in section 5103 of title 31, United States 
Code.

SEC. 4. SOURCES OF BULLION.

    The Secretary shall obtain silver for the coins authorized under 
section 3 from stockpiles established under the Strategic and Critical 
Materials Stock Piling Act.

SEC. 5. SELECTION OF DESIGN.

    The design for the coins authorized by this Act shall be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary after consultation with the 
        Commission of Fine Arts; and
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens Commemorative Advisory 
        Committee in accordance with section 5135 of title 31, United 
        States Code.

SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
coins authorized under section 3 shall be sold by the Secretary at a 
price equal to the face value, plus the cost of designing and issuing 
such coins (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and 
overhead expenses), and the surcharge provided for in subsection (d).
    (b) Bulk Sales.--The Secretary shall make bulk sales of the coins 
authorized under section 3 at a reasonable discount.
    (c) Prepaid Orders.--The Secretary shall accept prepaid orders for 
the coins authorized under section 3 prior to the issuance of such 
coins. Sales under this subsection shall be at a reasonable discount.
    (d) Surcharges.--All sales of the coins authorized under section 3 
shall include a surcharge of $7 per coin.

SEC. 7. ISSUANCE OF COINS.

    (a) In General.--The coins authorized under section 3 may be issued 
in uncirculated and proof qualities, except that not more than 1 
facility of the United States Mint may be used to strike any particular 
quality.
    (b) Commencement of Issuance.--The Secretary may issue the coins 
authorized under section 3 beginning on July 4, 1994.
    (c) Period of Authority.--Coins authorized under section 3 may be 
minted beginning 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act and 
for a period of not more than 1 year after such date.

SEC. 8. GENERAL WAIVER OF PROCUREMENT RELATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), no provision 
of law governing procurement or public contracts shall be applicable to 
the procurement of goods or services required to carry out this Act.
    (b) Equal Employment Opportunity.--Subsection (a) shall not relieve 
any person entering into a contract under the authority of this Act 
from complying with any law relating to equal employment opportunity.

SEC. 9. DISTRIBUTION OF SURCHARGES.

    Of the total surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of 
coins in accordance with section 6 of this Act--
            (1) 50 percent shall be returned to the Federal Treasury 
        for the purpose of reducing the national debt; and
            (2) 50 percent shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to 
        the Independence Hall Preservation Fund for the purposes of--
                    (A) creating an endowment fund moneys from which 
                shall be used to meet the needs for capital 
                improvements in Independence National Historic Park;
                    (B) funding projects of capital replacement in 
                buildings in Independence National Historic Park; and
                    (C) funding those needs deemed appropriate by the 
                Directors of the fund to foster and increase the 
                respect and admiration of visitors to Independence 
                National Historic Park.

SEC. 10. AUDITS.

    The Comptroller General of the United States shall have the right 
to examine such books, records, documents, and other data of the 
Independence Hall Preservation Fund as may be related to the 
expenditure of amounts paid under section 9.

SEC. 11. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES.

    (a) No Net Cost to the Government.--The Secretary shall take such 
actions as may be necessary to ensure that the minting and issuance of 
the coins referred to in section 3 will not result in any net cost to 
the Federal Government.
    (b) Payment for Issuance of Coins.--No coin shall be issued under 
this Act unless the Secretary has received--
            (1) full payment for such coin;
            (2) security satisfactory to the Secretary to indemnify the 
        United States for full payment for such coin; or
            (3) a guarantee of full payment satisfactory to the 
        Secretary from a depository institution whose deposits are 
        insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the 
        National Credit Union Administration.

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