[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 768 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 768

 To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to the soldiers from the United 
    States who were prisoners of war at Bataan during World War II.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 1, 2009

   Mr. Udall of New Mexico (for himself, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Bond, Mr. 
Inouye, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Levin, Mr. Udall of Colorado, and Ms. Landrieu) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
            Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to the soldiers from the United 
    States who were prisoners of war at Bataan 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. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) By April 1942, nearly 12,000 soldiers from the United 
        States and 67,000 soldiers from the Philippines based at 
        Bataan, Philippines, had bravely and staunchly fought off enemy 
        attacks for more than 4 months under strenuous conditions that 
        resulted in starvation and disease.
            (2) By maintaining their position and engaging the enemy 
        for as long as they did, the soldiers at Bataan were able to 
        redefine the momentum of the war and provide other United 
        States and Allied forces throughout the Pacific with time to 
        plan and prepare for subsequent crucial battles.
            (3) On April 9, 1942, Major General Edward King surrendered 
        the soldiers from the United States and the Philippines into 
        enemy hands.
            (4) Over the next week, the soldiers from the United States 
        and the Philippines were taken prisoner and forced to march 65 
        miles without any food, water, or medical care in what came to 
        be know as the Bataan Death March.
            (5) During this forced march, thousands of soldiers died, 
        either from starvation, lack of medical care, sheer exhaustion, 
        or abuse by their captors.
            (6) Within the first 40 days at Camp O'Donnell, 1,600 more 
        prisoners from the United States died.
            (7) The conditions at the camp were substandard, leading to 
        increased disease and malnutrition among the prisoners.
            (8) On June 6, 1942, the prisoners from the United States 
        were transferred to Cabanatuan, north of Camp O'Donnell.
            (9) In July 1942, all prisoners from the Philippines were 
        paroled.
            (10) The prisoners who remained in the camps suffered from 
        continued mistreatment, malnutrition, lack of medical care, and 
        horrific conditions.
            (11) The prisoners who remained in these camps were 
        liberated in 1945.
            (12) Over the subsequent decades, these prisoners formed 
        support groups, were honored in local and State memorials, and 
        told their story to all people of the United States.
            (13) Many of these soldiers have now passed away, and those 
        who remain continue to tell their story.
            (14) The people of the United States are forever indebted 
        to these men for--
                    (A) the courage they demonstrated during the first 
                4 months of World War II in fighting against enemy 
                soldiers; and
                    (B) the perseverance they demonstrated during 3 
                years of capture, imprisonment, and atrocious 
                conditions, while maintaining dignity, honor, 
                patriotism, and loyalty.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

    (a) Award Authorized.--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 the Congress, of a single gold 
medal of appropriate design in honor of the soldiers from the United 
States who were prisoners of war at Bataan, collectively, in 
recognition of their personal sacrifice and service to their country.
    (b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the award under 
subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act 
referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall strike the gold medal with 
suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the 
Secretary.
    (c) Smithsonian Institution.--
            (1) In general.--Following the award of the gold medal in 
        honor of the prisoners of war at Bataan under subsection (a), 
        the gold medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, 
        where it shall be displayed as appropriate and made available 
        for research.
            (2) Sense of the congress.--It is the sense of the Congress 
        that the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal 
        received under paragraph (1) available for display at other 
        locations, particularly such locations as are associated with 
        the prisoners of war at Bataan.

SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

    (a) Striking of Duplicates.--Under such regulations as the 
Secretary may prescribe, the Secretary may strike duplicates in bronze 
of the gold medal struck under section 2.
    (b) Selling of Duplicates.--The Secretary may sell such duplicates 
under subsection (a) at a price sufficient to cover the costs of such 
duplicates, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and 
overhead expenses.

SEC. 4. NATIONAL MEDALS.

    Medals struck pursuant to this Act are National medals for purposes 
of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund, an 
amount not to exceed $30,000 to pay for the cost of the medal 
authorized under section 2.
    (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate 
bronze medals under section 3 shall be deposited in the United States 
Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
                                 <all>