[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2681 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2681

To require the issuance of medals to recognize the dedication and valor 
                    of Native American code talkers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 29, 2008

  Mr. Inhofe (for himself, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Grassley, Mr. 
 Thune, and Mr. Coburn) introduced the following bill; which was read 
  twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the issuance of medals to recognize the dedication and valor 
                    of Native American code talkers.

    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 ``Code Talkers Recognition Act of 
2008''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to require the issuance of medals to 
express the sense of Congress that--
            (1) the service of Native American code talkers to the 
        United States deserves immediate recognition for dedication and 
        valor; and
            (2) honoring Native American code talkers is long overdue.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) when the United States entered World War I, Native 
        Americans were not accorded the status of citizens of the 
        United States;
            (2) without regard to that lack of citizenship, members of 
        Indian tribes and nations enlisted in the Armed Forces to fight 
        on behalf of the United States;
            (3) the first reported use of Native American code talkers 
        was on October 17, 1918;
            (4)(A) during World War I, Choctaw code talkers were the 
        first code talkers who played a role in United States military 
        operations by transmitting vital communications that helped 
        defeat German forces in Europe;
            (B) because the language used by the Choctaw code talkers 
        in the transmission of information was not based on a European 
        language or on a mathematical progression, the Germans were 
        unable to understand any of the transmissions;
            (C) this was the first time in modern warfare that such a 
        transmission of messages in a native language was used for the 
        purpose of confusing an enemy;
            (5) on December 7, 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, 
        Hawaii, and Congress declared war the following day;
            (6)(A) the Federal Government called on the Comanche Nation 
        to support the military effort during World War II by 
        recruiting and enlisting Comanche men to serve in the Army to 
        develop a secret code based on the Comanche language;
            (B) the Army recruited approximately 50 Native Americans 
        for special native language communication assignments; and
            (C) the Marines recruited several hundred Navajos for duty 
        in the Pacific region;
            (7)(A) during World War II, the United States employed 
        Native American code talkers who developed secret means of 
        communication based on native languages and were critical to 
        winning the war; and
            (B) to the frustration of the enemies of the United States, 
        the code developed by the Native American code talkers proved 
        to be unbreakable and was used extensively throughout the 
        European theater;
            (8) in 2001, Congress and President Bush honored Navajo 
        code talkers with congressional gold medals for the 
        contributions of the code talkers to the United States Armed 
        Forces as radio operators during World War II;
            (9) soldiers from the Assiniboine, Cherokee, Cheyenne, 
        Chippewa/Oneida, Choctaw, Comanche, Cree, Crow, Hopi, Kiowa, 
        Menominee, Meskwaki, Mississauga, Muscogee, Osage, Pawnee, Sac 
        and Fox, Seminole, and Sioux (Lakota and Dakota) Indian tribes 
        and nations also served as code talkers during World War II;
            (10) the heroic and dramatic contributions of Native 
        American code talkers were instrumental in driving back Axis 
        forces across the Pacific during World War II; and
            (11) Congress should provide to all Native American code 
        talkers the recognition the code talkers deserve for the 
        contributions of the code talkers to United States victories in 
        World War I and World War II.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Code talker.--The term ``code talker'' means a Native 
        American who--
                    (A) served in the Armed Forces during a foreign 
                conflict in which the United States was involved; and
                    (B) during the term of service of the Native 
                American, participated in communication using a native 
                language.
            (2) Recognized tribe.--The term ``recognized tribe'' means 
        any of the following Indian tribes (as defined in section 4 of 
        the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
        U.S.C. 450b)):
                    (A) Assiniboine.
                    (B) Chippewa and Oneida.
                    (C) Choctaw.
                    (D) Comanche.
                    (E) Cree.
                    (F) Crow.
                    (G) Hopi.
                    (H) Kiowa.
                    (I) Menominee.
                    (J) Mississauga.
                    (K) Muscogee.
                    (L) Sac and Fox.
                    (M) Sioux.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Treasury.

SEC. 5. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDALS.

    (a) Award Authorization.--The Speaker of the House of 
Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make 
appropriate arrangements for the award, on behalf of Congress, of gold 
medals of appropriate design in recognition of the service of Native 
American code talkers of each recognized tribe.
    (b) Design and Striking.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall strike the gold medals 
        awarded under subsection (a) with appropriate emblems, devices, 
        and inscriptions, as determined by the Secretary.
            (2) Designs of medals emblematic of tribal affiliation and 
        participation.--The design of a gold medal under paragraph (1) 
        shall be emblematic of the participation of the code talkers of 
        each recognized tribe.
            (3) Treatment.--Each medal struck pursuant to this 
        subsection shall be considered to be a national medal for 
        purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
    (c) Action by Smithsonian Institution.--The Smithsonian 
Institution--
            (1) shall accept and maintain such gold medals, and such 
        silver duplicates of those medals, as recognized tribes elect 
        to send to the Smithsonian Institution;
            (2) shall maintain the list developed under section 6(1) of 
        the names of Native American code talkers of each recognized 
        tribe; and
            (3) is encouraged to create a standing exhibit for Native 
        American code talkers or Native American veterans.

SEC. 6. NATIVE AMERICAN CODE TALKERS.

    The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and 
the recognized tribes, shall--
            (1)(A) determine the identity, to the maximum extent 
        practicable, of each Native American code talker of each 
        recognized tribe;
            (B) include the name of each Native American code talker 
        identified under subparagraph (A) on a list, to be organized by 
        recognized tribe; and
            (C) provide the list, and any updates to the list, to the 
        Smithsonian Institution for maintenance under section 5(c)(2); 
        and
            (2) determine whether any Indian tribe that is not a 
        recognized tribe should be eligible to receive a gold medal 
        under this Act.

SEC. 7. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

    (a) Silver Duplicate Medals.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall strike duplicates in 
        silver of the gold medals struck under section 5(b), to be 
        awarded in accordance with paragraph (2).
            (2) Eligibility for award.--
                    (A) In general.--A Native American shall be 
                eligible to be awarded a silver duplicate medal struck 
                under paragraph (1) in recognition of the service of 
                Native American code talkers of the recognized tribe of 
                the Native American, if the Native American served in 
                the Armed Forces as a code talker in any foreign 
                conflict in which the United States was involved during 
                the 20th century.
                    (B) Death of code talker.--In the event of the 
                death of a Native American code talker who had not been 
                awarded a silver duplicate medal under this subsection, 
                the Secretary may award a silver duplicate medal to the 
                next of kin or other personal representative of the 
                Native American code talker.
                    (C) Determination.--Eligibility for an award under 
                this subsection shall be determined by the Secretary in 
                accordance with section 6.
    (b) Bronze Duplicate Medals.--The Secretary may strike and sell 
duplicates in bronze of the gold medals struck under section 5(b), in 
accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a 
price sufficient to cover--
            (1) the costs of striking the bronze duplicates, including 
        labor, materials, dyes, use of machinery, and overhead 
        expenses; and
            (2) the costs of striking the silver duplicate and gold 
        medals under subsection (a) and section 5(b), respectively.

SEC. 8. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

    (a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There are authorized to be 
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund such 
amounts as are necessary to pay for the cost of the medals struck 
pursuant to this Act.
    (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate 
bronze medals authorized under section 7(b) shall be deposited into the 
United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
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