[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 168 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 168

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
                     of the San Francisco Old Mint.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 15, 2003

 Mrs. Feinstein (for herself and Mrs. Boxer) 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 San Francisco Old Mint.

    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 ``San Francisco Old Mint Commemorative 
Coin Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the San Francisco Old Mint played an important role in 
        the history of the Nation;
            (2) the San Francisco Old Mint was established to convert 
        miners' gold from the California gold rush into coins;
            (3) the San Francisco Old Mint Building was designed by 
        architect A.B. Mullett, who also designed the United States 
        Treasury Building and the Old Executive Office Building;
            (4) the solid construction of the San Francisco Old Mint 
        Building enabled it to survive the 1906 San Francisco 
        earthquake and fire, making it the only financial institution 
        that was able to operate immediately after the earthquake and 
        the treasury for disaster relief funds for the city of San 
        Francisco;
            (5) coins struck at the San Francisco Old Mint are 
        distinguished by the ``S'' Mint Mark;
            (6) the San Francisco Old Mint is famous for many rare, 
        legendary issues, such as the 1870-S $3 coin, which is valued 
        today at well over $1,000,000; and
            (7) the San Francisco Old Mint Commemorative Coin will be 
        the first commemorative coin to honor a mint.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Denominations.--In commemoration of the San Francisco Old Mint, 
the Secretary of the Treasury (in this Act referred to as the 
``Secretary'') shall mint and issue the following coins:
            (1) $5 gold coins.--Not more than 100,000 $5 coins, each of 
        which shall--
                    (A) weigh 8.359 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of .850 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent alloy.
            (2) $1 silver coins.--Not more than 500,000 $1 coins, each 
        of which shall--
                    (A) weigh 26.73 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent alloy.
    (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.--All coins minted under this Act shall be 
considered to be numismatic items for purposes of section 5134 of title 
31, United States Code.

SEC. 4. SOURCES OF BULLION.

    The Secretary may obtain gold and silver for minting coins under 
this Act from any available source.

SEC. 5. DESIGN OF COINS.

    (a) Design Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this 
        Act shall be emblematic of the San Francisco Old Mint Building, 
        its importance to California and the history of the United 
        States, and its role in rebuilding San Francisco after the 1906 
        earthquake and fire.
            (2) Designation and inscriptions.--Each coin minted under 
        this Act shall contain--
                    (A) a designation of the value of the coin;
                    (B) an inscription of the year ``2006''; and
                    (C) inscriptions of the words--
                            (i) ``Liberty'';
                            (ii) ``In God We Trust'';
                            (iii) ``United States of America''; and
                            (iv) ``E Pluribus Unum''.
    (b) Selection.--The design for the coins minted under this Act 
shall be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary, after consultation with the 
        Commission of Fine Arts and the Board of the San Francisco 
        Museum and Historical Society;
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory 
        Committee; and
            (3) reviewed by the Board of the San Francisco Museum and 
        Historical Society.

SEC. 6. 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 period beginning on January 1, 2006, and 
ending on December 31, 2006.
    (c) Mint Facility.--The coins authorized under this section shall 
be struck at the San Francisco Mint to the greatest extent possible.

SEC. 7. 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) a surcharge in an amount equal to--
                    (A) $35 per coin for the $5 coin; and
                    (B) $10 per coin for the $1 coin; and
            (3) the per capita 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 such 
        coins.
            (2) Discount.--Sale prices with respect to prepaid orders 
        under paragraph (1) shall be at a reasonable discount.

SEC. 8. DISTRIBUTION OF SURCHARGES.

    (a) In General.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United 
States Code, all proceeds received by the Secretary from any surcharge 
imposed on the sale of coins issued under this Act shall be paid by the 
Secretary to the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society.
    (b) Audits.--As a condition of receiving payments under subsection 
(a), the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society shall be subject 
to the audit requirements of section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United 
States Code.
                                 <all>