[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2689 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2689

To authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf of Congress 
 to Andrew Jackson Higgins (posthumously), and to the D-day Museum in 
  recognition of the contributions of Higgins Industries and the more 
than 30,000 employees of Higgins Industries to the Nation and to world 
                       peace during World War II.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                 June 7 (legislative day, June 6), 2000

 Ms. Landrieu introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf of Congress 
 to Andrew Jackson Higgins (posthumously), and to the D-day Museum in 
  recognition of the contributions of Higgins Industries and the more 
than 30,000 employees of Higgins Industries to the Nation and to world 
                       peace during World War II.

    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 ``Andrew Jackson Higgins Gold Medal 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Andrew Jackson Higgins was born on August 28, 1886, in 
        Columbus, Nebraska, moved to New Orleans in 1910, and formed 
        Higgins Industries on September 26, 1930.
            (2) Andrew Jackson Higgins designed, engineered, and 
        produced the ``Eureka'', a unique shallow draft boat the design 
        of which evolved during World War II into 2 basic classes of 
        military craft: high speed PT boats, and types of Higgins 
        landing craft (LCPs, LCPLs, LCVPs, LCMs and LCSs).
            (3) Andrew Jackson Higgins designed, engineered, and 
        constructed 4 major assembly line plants in New Orleans for 
        mass production of Higgins landing craft and other vessels 
        vital to the Allied Forces' conduct of World War II.
            (4) Andrew Jackson Higgins bought the entire 1940 
        Philippine mahogany crop and other material purely at risk 
        without a government contract, anticipating that America would 
        join World War II and that Higgins Industries would need the 
        wood to build landing craft. Higgins also bought steel, 
        engines, and other material necessary to construct landing 
        craft.
            (5) Andrew Jackson Higgins, through Higgins Industries, 
        employed a fully integrated assembly line work force, black and 
        white, male and female, of up to 30,000 during World War II, 
        with equal pay for equal work.
            (6) In 1939, the United States Navy had a total of 18 
        landing craft in the fleet.
            (7) From November 18, 1940, when Higgins Industries was 
        awarded its first contract for Higgins landing craft until the 
        conclusion of the war, the employees of Higgins Industries 
        produced 12,300 Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel (LCVP's) and 
        nearly 8,000 other landing craft of all types.
            (8) During World War II, Higgins Industries employees 
        produced 20,094 boats, including landing craft and Patrol 
        Torpedo boats, and trained 30,000 Navy, Marine, and Coast Guard 
        personnel on the safe operation of landing craft at the 
        Higgins' Boat Operators School.
            (9) On Thanksgiving Day 1944, General Dwight D. Eisenhower 
        stated in an address to the Nation: ``Let us thank God for 
        Higgins Industries, management, and labor which has given us 
        the landing boats with which to conduct our campaign.''.
            (10) Higgins landing craft, constructed of wood and steel, 
        transported fully armed troops, light tanks, field artillery, 
        and other mechanized equipment essential to amphibious 
        operations.
            (11) Higgins landing craft made the amphibious assault on 
        D-day and the landings at Leyte, North Africa, Guadalcanal, 
        Sicily, Iwo Jima, Tarawa, Guam, and thousands of less well-
        known assaults possible.
            (12) Captain R.R.M. Emmett, a commander at the North Africa 
        amphibious landing, and later commandant of the Great Lakes 
        Training Station, wrote during the war: ``When the history of 
        this war is finally written by historians, far enough removed 
        from its present turmoil and clamor to be cool and impartial, I 
        predict that they will place Mr. (Andrew Jackson) Higgins very 
        high on the list of those who deserve the commendation and 
        gratitude of all citizens.''.
            (13) In 1964, President Dwight D. Eisenhower told historian 
        Steven Ambrose: ``He (Higgins) is the man who won the war for 
        us. If Higgins had not developed and produced those landing 
        craft, we never could have gone in over an open beach. We would 
        have had to change the entire strategy of the war.''.

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

    (a) Presentation Authorized.--
            (1) In general.--The President is authorized, on behalf of 
        Congress, to award a gold medal of appropriate design to--
                    (A) the family of Andrew Jackson Higgins, honoring 
                Andrew Jackson Higgins (posthumously) for his 
                contributions to the Nation and world peace; and
                    (B) the D-day Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana, for 
                public display, honoring Andrew Jackson Higgins 
                (posthumously) and the employees of Higgins Industries 
                for their contributions to the Nation and world peace.
            (2) Modalities.--The modalities of presentation of the 
        medals under this Act shall be determined by the President 
        after consultation with the Speaker of the House of 
        Representatives, the Majority Leader of the Senate, the 
        Minority Leader of the Senate, and the Minority Leader of the 
        House of Representatives.
    (b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation referred 
to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (in this Act 
referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall strike 2 gold medals with 
suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the 
Secretary.

SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

    The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold 
medals struck under this Act, under such regulations as the Secretary 
may prescribe, and at a price sufficient to cover the costs thereof, 
including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead 
expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.

SEC. 5. STATUS AS NATIONAL MEDALS.

    The medals struck under this Act are national medals for purposes 
of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

    (a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to be 
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund an amount 
not to exceed $60,000 to pay for the cost of the medals authorized by 
this Act.
    (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate 
bronze medals under section 4 shall be deposited in the United States 
Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
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