[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2579 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2579

 To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in recognition 
and celebration of the establishment of the United States Army in 1775, 
 to honor the American soldier of both today and yesterday, in wartime 
and in peace, and to commemorate the traditions, history, and heritage 
 of the United States Army and its role in American society, from the 
                       Colonial period to today.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 30, 2008

Mr. Inouye (for himself and Mr. Inhofe) 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 recognition 
and celebration of the establishment of the United States Army in 1775, 
 to honor the American soldier of both today and yesterday, in wartime 
and in peace, and to commemorate the traditions, history, and heritage 
 of the United States Army and its role in American society, from the 
                       Colonial period to today.

    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 ``United States Army Commemorative 
Coin Act of 2008''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the United States Army, founded in 1775, has served 
        this country well for over 230 years;
            (2) the United States Army has played a decisive role in 
        protecting and defending freedom throughout the history of the 
        United States, from the Colonial period to today, in wartime 
        and in peace, and has consistently answered the call to serve 
        the American people at home and abroad since the Revolutionary 
        War;
            (3) the sacrifice of the American soldier, of all ranks, 
        since the earliest days of the Republic has been immense and is 
        deserving of the unique recognition bestowed by commemorative 
        coinage;
            (4) the Army, the Nation's oldest and largest military 
        service, is the only service branch that currently does not 
        have a comprehensive national museum celebrating, preserving, 
        and displaying its heritage and honoring its veterans;
            (5) the National Museum of the United States Army will be--
                    (A) the Army's only service-wide, national museum 
                honoring all soldiers, of all ranks, in all branches 
                since 1775; and
                    (B) located at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, across the 
                Potomac River from the Nation's Capitol, a 10-minute 
                drive from Mount Vernon, the home of the Army's first 
                Commander-in-Chief, and astride the Civil War's 
                decisive Washington-Richmond corridor;
            (6) the Army Historical Foundation (in this Act referred to 
        as the ``Foundation''), founded in 1983--
                    (A) is dedicated to preserving the history and 
                heritage of the American soldier; and
                    (B) seeks to educate future Americans to fully 
                appreciate the sacrifices that generations of American 
                soldiers have made to safeguard the freedoms of this 
                Nation;
            (7) the completion and opening to the public of the 
        National Museum of the United States Army will immeasurably 
        help in fulfilling that mission;
            (8) the Foundation is a nongovernmental, member-based, and 
        publicly supported nonprofit organization that is dependent on 
        funds from members, donations, and grants for support;
            (9) the Foundation uses such support to help create the 
        National Museum of the United States Army, refurbish historical 
        Army buildings, acquire and conserve Army historical art and 
        artifacts, support Army history educational programs, for 
        research, and publication of historical materials on the 
        American soldier, and to provide support and counsel to private 
        and governmental organizations committed to the same goals as 
        the Foundation;
            (10) in 2000, the Secretary of the Army designated the 
        Foundation as its primary partner in the building of the 
        National Museum of the United States Army; and
            (11) the Foundation is actively engaged in executing a 
        major capital campaign to support the National Museum of the 
        United States Army.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Denominations.--In recognition and celebration of the founding 
of the United States Army in 1775, and notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, 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, which 
        shall--
                    (A) weigh 8.359 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent alloy.
            (2) $1 silver coins.--Not more than 500,000 $1 coins, which 
        shall--
                    (A) weigh 26.73 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent 
                copper.
            (3) Half dollar clad coins.--Not more than 750,000 half 
        dollar coins, which shall--
                    (A) weigh 11.34 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 1.205 inches; and
                    (C) be minted to the specifications for half dollar 
                coins, contained in section 5112(b) of title 31, United 
                States Code.
    (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 traditions, history, and 
        heritage of the United States Army, and its role in American 
        society from the Colonial period to today.
            (2) Designations 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 ``2011''; 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--
            (1) contain motifs that specifically honor the American 
        soldier of both today and yesterday, in wartime and in peace, 
        such designs to be consistent with the traditions and heritage 
        of the United States Army, the mission and goals of the 
        National Museum of the United States Army, and the missions and 
        goals of the Foundation;
            (2) be selected by the Secretary, after consultation with 
        the Secretary of the Army, the Foundation, and the Commission 
        of Fine Arts; and
            (3) be reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS.

    (a) Quality of Coins.--Coins minted under this Act shall be issued 
in uncirculated and proof qualities.
    (b) Mint Facilities.--For each of the 3 coins minted under this 
Act, at least 1 facility of the United States Mint shall be used to 
strike proof quality coins, while at least 1 other such facility shall 
be used to strike the uncirculated quality coins.
    (c) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins minted 
under this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 
2011.

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, 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 $35 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 Foundation to help finance the National Museum of the United States 
Army.
    (c) Audits.--The Foundation shall be subject to the audit 
requirements of section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, 
with regard to the amounts received by the Foundation 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 2-commemorative 
coin program issuance limitation under section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, 
United States Code (as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act). 
The Secretary of the Treasury may issue guidance to carry out this 
subsection.
                                 <all>