[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2760 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2760

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
 of the centennial of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition and 
               the Panama Canal, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 19, 2013

Ms. Pelosi (for herself, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Huffman, Ms. Lee of California, 
  Ms. Lofgren, Mr. George Miller of California, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms. 
Roybal-Allard, Ms. Speier, Mr. Swalwell of California, and Mr. Thompson 
of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
 of the centennial of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition and 
               the Panama Canal, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Panama Canal and Pan-Pacific 
Exhibition Centennial Celebration Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Panama Canal, which cuts across the Isthmus of 
        Panama, was built between 1890 and 1914. It was the world's 
        greatest engineering feat of its time and required a labor 
        force of almost 40,000.
            (2) President Theodore Roosevelt, recognizing the value of 
        a canal, led the United States in buying the equipment and 
        concession to build the canal for $40 million, and championed 
        the effort that overcame malaria and immense logistical 
        problems. The Canal opened on August 15, 1914--401 years after 
        Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa first crossed Panama.
            (3) Stretching 51 miles, the Panama Canal connected the 
        Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, saving sailors a 
        dangerous 8,000-mile journey around Cape Horn and through the 
        Straits of Magellan, and cutting in half the time previously 
        required to sail between the oceans.
            (4) The 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition was a 
        world's fair held in San Francisco, California. The Exposition 
        ran from February 20 until December 4, 1915.
            (5) The Exposition commemorated the completion of the 
        Panama Canal and the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the 
        Pacific Ocean by Balboa.
            (6) Congress authorized the United States Mint to issue 
        five different coins dated 1915 in connection with the Panama-
        Pacific International Exposition. The coins represent a high-
        water mark for American commemorative coins. Produced at the 
        San Francisco Mint, these were the first United States 
        commemorative coins to bear the motto ``In God We Trust'', and 
        included the silver Panama-Pacific half dollar and four gold 
        coins in denominations of one dollar, 2\1/2\ dollars, a 50-
        dollar round coin, and a unique 50-dollar octagonal coin.
            (7) The octagonal $50 gold piece was the largest coin 
        authorized by Congress, and the first minted since 1852 in a 
        shape other than round.
            (8) The United States should mark the centennial of this 
        important event in San Francisco and the monumental achievement 
        of the opening of the Panama Canal.
            (9) The proceeds from the surcharge on the sale of such 
        commemorative coins will assist in supporting the educational 
        programs of the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Denominations.--The Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in 
this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall mint and issue the 
following coins, notwithstanding section 5112(a) of title 31, United 
States Code:
            (1) $5 octagonal gold coins.--Not more than 75,000 $5 
        coins, which shall--
                    (A) be octagonal in shape;
                    (B) weigh 8.359 grams;
                    (C) have a distance between two opposing vertices 
                of 0.850 inches; and
                    (D) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent alloy.
            (2) $5 round gold coins.--Not more than 75,000 $5 coins, 
        which shall--
                    (A) be round in shape;
                    (B) weigh 8.359 grams;
                    (C) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and
                    (D) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent alloy.
            (3) Two and one-half dollar gold coins.--Not more than 
        50,000 two and one-half dollar coins, which shall--
                    (A) weigh 4.18 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 0.7087 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent copper.
            (4) $1 gold coins.--Not more than 50,000 $1 coins, which 
        shall--
                    (A) weigh 1.67 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 0.5906 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent copper.
            (5) Half dollar silver coins.--Not more than 250,000 half 
        dollar coins, which shall--
                    (A) weigh 12.5 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 1.2047 inches; and
                    (C) contain .999 fine silver.
    (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 section 5134 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 should be close likenesses of the five coins issued by the 
        San Francisco Mint at the opening of the Pan-Pacific 
        Exposition.
            (2) Specific design requirements.--
                    (A) $5 gold coins.--The $5 octagonal gold coins 
                minted under this Act and the $5 round gold coins 
                minted under this Act shall be a close likeness of the 
                octagonal Panama-Pacific Exposition $50 gold coin and 
                the round Panama-Pacific Exposition $50 gold coin, 
                respectively. Such coins--
                            (i) shall have an obverse depicting the 
                        head of the goddess Minerva, with a Corinthian-
                        style helmet, enclosed in a ring of beads;
                            (ii) with a reverse--
                                    (I) depicting an owl perched on a 
                                pine bough complete with four pine 
                                cones and multiple sprigs of pine 
                                needles surrounded by the same ring of 
                                beads depicted on the obverse; and
                                    (II) depicting, outside this ring, 
                                the inscriptions ``PANAMA-PACIFIC 
                                EXPOSITION'' and ``SAN FRANCISCO'' in a 
                                single line of text circling the entire 
                                rim, with the words separated by dots; 
                                and
                            (iii) with respect to the octagonal coin, 
                        such coin shall also have an obverse and 
                        reverse that depicts, in the eight angles of 
                        the vertices, eight stylized dolphins that form 
                        an outer circle.
                    (B) Two and one-half dollar gold coins.--The two 
                and one-half dollar gold coins minted under this Act 
                shall be a close likeness of the Panama-Pacific 
                Exposition two and one-half dollar gold coin, and--
                            (i) the obverse shall bear the Greek 
                        goddess Columbia riding sidesaddle on the back 
                        of a Greek mythological hippocampus seahorse, 
                        with a caduceus in her left hand; and
                            (ii) the reverse shall bear an eagle 
                        perched on a plaque that is inscribed ``E 
                        Pluribus Unum'' and ``United States of 
                        America''.
                    (C) $1 gold coins.--The $1 gold coin minted under 
                this Act shall be a close likeness of the Panama-
                Pacific Exposition $1 gold coin, and--
                            (i) the obverse shall bear the profile of a 
                        man wearing a cap which is intended to depict a 
                        laborer who worked on the construction of the 
                        Panama Canal; and
                            (ii) the reverse shall bear the image of 
                        two dolphins symbolizing the meeting of the two 
                        oceans, with the inscriptions ``PANAMA PACIFIC 
                        EXPOSITION'' and ``SAN FRANCISCO''.
                    (D) Half dollar silver coins.--The half dollar 
                silver coins minted under this Act shall be designed--
                            (i) to be a close likeness of the 1915 
                        Panama Pacific Exposition half dollar coin;
                            (ii) with an obverse depicting Columbia 
                        scattering flowers from a cornucopia held by a 
                        small child towards a sunset on the Golden Gate 
                        (prior to the construction of the now famous 
                        bridge), which was designed by the Mint's then-
                        Chief Engraver, Charles Barber; and
                            (iii) with a reverse depicting an eagle 
                        resting on the union shield with an oak branch 
                        to its left, for stability and strength, and an 
                        olive branch to its right, for peace, credited 
                        to Barber's assistant George T. Morgan, 
                        designer of the Morgan dollar.
            (3) Designation 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--
                            (i) depicted in Roman numerals 
                        (``MMXVII''), in the case of the $5 and half 
                        dollar coins; and
                            (ii) ``2017'', in the case of the $1 coins 
                        and the two and one-half dollar gold coins; 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 be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary after consultation with the 
        Commission of Fine Arts; and
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

SEC. 5. CIRCULATING COIN.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary may issue circulating clad half 
dollar coins, as described under section 5112 of title 31, United 
States Code, in the same design as described for the half dollar silver 
coins under section 4(a)(2)(D).
    (b) Limitation.--If the Secretary issues such circulating half 
dollar coins, the Secretary--
            (1) may issue them in no more than 5 consecutive calendar 
        years, beginning in calendar year 2017; and
            (2) shall ensure that, of the total number of half dollar 
        coins issued in any such calendar year, not more than half of 
        such coins are made up of the half dollar coins issued pursuant 
        to this section.

SEC. 6. ISSUANCE OF COINS.

    (a) Quality of Coins.--Coins minted under this Act shall be issued 
in uncirculated and proof qualities.
    (b) Mint Facility.--Only 1 facility of the United States Mint may 
be used to strike any particular quality of the coins minted under this 
Act.
    (c) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins minted 
under this Act, other than coins described under section 5, only during 
the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 2017.

SEC. 7. SALE OF COINS.

    (a) Sale Price.--The coins issued under this Act, other than coins 
described under section 5, 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 8(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, other than coins described under section 5, at a 
reasonable discount.
    (c) Prepaid Orders.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall accept prepaid orders 
        for the coins minted under this Act, other than coins described 
        under section 5, 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. SURCHARGES.

    (a) In General.--All sales of coins issued under this Act, other 
than coins described under section 5, shall include a surcharge of--
            (1) $35 per coin for the $5 coins;
            (2) $20 per coin for the two and one-half dollar coin;
            (3) $15 per coin for the $1 coin; and
            (4) $10 per coin for the half dollar coin.
    (b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f)(1) of title 31, 
United States Code, all surcharges received by the Secretary from the 
sale of coins issued under this Act, other than coins described under 
section 5, shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the San Francisco 
Museum and Historical Society for the design and construction of 
appropriate exhibitions in the San Francisco Museum and Historical 
Society, including the necessary adaptive reuse of the Old Mint, 
commemorating the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, as well as 
the development of appropriate exhibitions at the Palace of Fine Arts 
on the grounds of the former Panama-Pacific International Exposition.
    (c) Audits.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
have the right to examine such books, records, documents, and other 
data of each of the organizations referred to in subsection (b) as may 
be related to the expenditures of amounts paid under such subsection.
    (d) Limitation.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), no surcharge may 
be included with respect to the issuance under this Act, other than 
coins described under section 5, 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 the enactment of this Act). The Secretary of the 
Treasury may issue guidance to carry out this subsection.
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