[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4040 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4040
To provide for the award of a gold medal on behalf of Congress to Jack
Nicklaus in recognition of his service to the Nation in promoting
excellence and good sportsmanship in golf.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 15, 2012
Mr. Baca (for himself, Mr. Rooney, Mr. Tiberi, and Mr. Austria)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the award of a gold medal on behalf of Congress to Jack
Nicklaus in recognition of his service to the Nation in promoting
excellence and good sportsmanship in golf.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) Jack Nicklaus is a world famous golf professional, a
highly successful business executive, a prominent advertising
spokesman, a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, and a
man with a common touch that has made him one of those most
popular and accessible public figures in history.
(2) Jack Nicklaus amassed 118 victories in professional
competition of national or international stature by the end of
2005, 73 of which came on the Professional Golf Association
Tour, and 18 professional major-championship titles. He is the
only player in golf history to have won each major championship
at least three times and is the only player to complete a
career ``Grand Slam'' on the regular and senior tours.
(3) Jack Nicklaus' magnetic personality and unfailing sense
of kindness and thoughtfulness have endeared him to millions
throughout the world.
(4) Jack Nicklaus has been the recipient of countless
athletic honors, including the Muhammad Ali Sports Legend Award
and the first-ever ESPY Lifetime Achievement Award. He became
the first golfer and only the third athlete to receive the
Vince Lombardi Award of Excellence and is also a five-time
winner of the PGA Player of the Year Award. He was also
selected as Golfer of the Century by GOLF Magazine, Best
Individual Male Athlete of the 20th Century and Sportsman of
the Year by Sports Illustrated, and he was also inducted into
the World Golf Hall of Fame.
(5) Jack Nicklaus has received numerous honors outside the
world of sports, including several architectural awards for his
work in golf course designs, such as The Old Tom Morris Award
which is the highest honor given by the Golf Course
Superintendents Association of America, and both the Donald
Ross Award given by the American Society of Golf Course
Architects and the Don A. Rossi Award given by the Golf Course
Builders Association of America.
(6) Jack Nicklaus has been involved in the design of 275
golf courses worldwide and his business, Nicklaus Design, has
346 courses open for play globally.
(7) Jack Nicklaus served as the Global Ambassador for a
campaign to include golf in the Olympic Games, which was
achieved and will begin in the 2016 Olympic Program.
(8) Jack Nicklaus was honored by President George W. Bush
in 2005 by receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the
highest honor given to any U.S. civilian.
(9) Jack Nicklaus has a long standing commitment to
numerous charitable events such as supporting the Nicklaus
Children's Health Care Foundation, which provides pediatric
health care services in a five county area including Palm Beach
County, Florida, has assisted in raising over $12 million in
just five years for the cause, and continues to support several
scholarship foundations, other children's hospitals, and junior
golf initiatives.
(10) Jack Nicklaus continues to manage The Memorial
Tournament in his home state of Ohio, in which contributions
generated through the support of over 2,600 volunteers are
given to Nationwide Children's Hospital fund. This has garnered
more than $5.7 million for programs and services at this
hospital since 1976, so that Central Ohio will continue to have
one of the best children's hospitals in the United States.
(11) Jack Nicklaus and his wife serve as honorary chairman
and active chairwoman of the Nicklaus Children's Health Care
Foundation in North Palm Beach, Florida, which provides free of
charge health assistance and services to more than 4,000
children and their families through Child Life programs
(support therapeutic interventions for children with chronic
and acute conditions during hospitalization), Miami Children's
Hospital Nicklaus Care Centers (to offer a new option to Palm
Beach County area families with children who require pediatric
specialty care), and Safe Kids program (aimed at keeping
children injury free and offer safety education in an effort to
decrease accidental injuries in children).
(12) Jack Nicklaus established an annual pro-am golf
tournament called ``The Jake'' to honor his 17-month-old
grandson who passed in 2005, and it serves as a primary
fundraiser for the Nicklaus Children's Health Care Foundation,
which has raised over $3 million over the last several years.
(13) Jack Nicklaus and General John Shalikashvili (ret.)
serve as honorary chairs of the American Lake Veterans Golf
Course in Tacoma, Washington, which is designed for the
rehabilitation of wounded and disabled veterans. Nicklaus has
donated his design services for the improvement of the course,
and raised contributions for the addition of nine new holes,
the construction of the Rehabilitation and Learning Center, and
for the upgrade of the maintenance facilities through a two-day
event in Palm Desert, CA, called the ``Nicklaus Nine''.
(14) Jack Nicklaus serves as a spokesperson and Trustee for
The First Tee program which brings the game of golf to children
who would not otherwise be exposed to it.
(15) Jack Nicklaus remains active in tournament golf,
although he retired from competition in the major championships
in 2005, when he played his final British Open, his final
Masters Tournament, and led the United States to a thrilling
victory in the Presidents Cup.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) Authorization.--The Speaker of the House of Representatives and
the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make appropriate
arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of the Congress, of a gold
medal of appropriate design to Jack Nicklaus in recognition of his
service to the Nation in promoting excellence and good sportsmanship.
(b) Design and Striking.--For the purpose of the presentation
referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury shall
strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions to
be determined by the Secretary.
SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
Under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury may
prescribe, the Secretary may strike duplicate medals in bronze of the
gold medal struck pursuant to section 2 and sell such duplicate medals
at a price sufficient to cover the costs of the duplicate medals
(including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead expenses)
and the cost of the golf medal.
SEC. 4. NATIONAL MEDALS.
The medals struck under this Act are national medals for purposes
of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
SEC. 5. FUNDING.
(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 medals authorized by
this Act.
(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>