[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2519 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.2519

                     One Hundred Fifteenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
          the third day of January, two thousand and seventeen


                                 An Act


 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemorative coins in 
      recognition of the 100th anniversary of The American Legion.

    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 American Legion 100th Anniversary 
Commemorative Coin Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
    The Congress finds that--
        (1) on March 15, 1919, The American Legion was founded in 
    Paris, France, by members of the American Expeditionary Force 
    occupying Europe after World War I and concerned about the welfare 
    of their comrades and communities upon their return to the United 
    States;
        (2) on September 16, 1919, Congress chartered The American 
    Legion, which quickly grew to become the largest veterans service 
    organization in the United States;
        (3) The American Legion conferences in Washington, DC, in 1923 
    and 1924 crafted the first United States Flag Code, which was 
    adopted in schools, States, cities and counties prior to being 
    enacted in 1942, establishing the proper use, display, and respect 
    for the colors of the United States;
        (4) during World War II, The American Legion developed and 
    presented to Congress its case for vastly improved support for 
    medically discharged, disabled veterans, which ultimately became 
    the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 (58 Stat. 284; chapter 
    268), better known as the G.I. Bill of Rights, and was drafted by 
    former American Legion National Commander Harry W. Colmery in 
    Washington's Mayflower Hotel;
        (5) through the leadership and advocacy of The American Legion, 
    the G.I. Bill was enacted in June 1944, which led to monumental 
    changes in United States society, including the democratization of 
    higher education, home ownership for average people in the United 
    States, better VA hospitals, business and farm loans for veterans, 
    and the ability to appeal conditions of military discharge;
        (6) defying those who argued the G.I. Bill would break the 
    Treasury, according to various researchers, the G.I. Bill provided 
    a tremendous return on investment of $7 to the United States 
    economy for every $1 spent on the program, triggering a half-
    century of prosperity in the United States;
        (7) after Hurricane Hugo in 1989, The American Legion 
    established the National Emergency Fund to provide immediate cash 
    relief for veterans who have been affected by natural disasters;
        (8) American Legion National Emergency Fund grants after 
    Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, for instance, exceeded 
    $1,700,000;
        (9) The American Legion fought to see the Veterans 
    Administration elevated to Cabinet-level status as the Department 
    of Veterans Affairs, ensuring support for veterans would be set at 
    the highest level of the Federal Government, as a priority issue 
    for the President;
        (10) after a decades-long struggle to improve the adjudication 
    process for veterans disputing claims decisions, The American 
    Legion helped shape and introduce the Veterans Reassurance Act to 
    create a venue for judicial review of veterans' appeals;
        (11) building on these efforts, legislation was passed in 1988 
    to create the United States Court of Veterans Appeals, today known 
    as the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims;
        (12) The American Legion created the American Legacy 
    Scholarship Fund for children of military members killed on active 
    duty on or after September 11, 2001;
        (13) in 2016, The American Legion's National Executive 
    Committee amended the original scholarship criteria to include 
    children of veterans with 50 percent or greater VA disability 
    ratings;
        (14) President George W. Bush signed into law the Post-9/11 
    Veterans Educational Assistance Act (title V of the Supplemental 
    Appropriations Act, 2008; 122 Stat. 2357), a next-generation G.I. 
    Bill strongly supported by The American Legion and the most 
    comprehensive educational benefits package since the original G.I. 
    Bill of Rights was enacted in 1944;
        (15) in August 2018, The American Legion will begin its 
    centennial recognition at the 100th National Convention in 
    Minneapolis, Minnesota, the site of the first American Legion 
    National Convention; and
        (16) in March 2019, the organization will celebrate its 100th 
    birthday in Paris, France, and September 16, 2019, will mark the 
    100th anniversary of The American Legion's Federal charter.
SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.
    (a) Denominations.--In recognition and celebration of the 100th 
anniversary of The American Legion, the Secretary of the Treasury 
(hereafter in this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall mint and 
issue the following coins:
        (1) $5 gold coins.--Not more than 50,000 $5 coins, which 
    shall--
            (A) weigh 8.359 grams;
            (B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and
            (C) contain not less than 90 percent gold.
        (2) $1 silver coins.--Not more than 400,000 $1 coins, which 
    shall--
            (A) weigh 26.73 grams;
            (B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
            (C) contain not less than 90 percent silver.
        (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) In General.--The design for the coins minted under this Act 
shall be emblematic of The American Legion.
    (b) Designations and Inscriptions.--On each coin minted under this 
Act there shall be--
        (1) a designation of the denomination of the coin;
        (2) an inscription of the year ``2019''; and
        (3) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God We Trust'', 
    ``United States of America'', and ``E Pluribus Unum''.
    (c) Selection.--The design for the coins minted under this Act 
shall be--
        (1) selected by the Secretary after consultation with--
            (A) the Commission of Fine Arts; and
            (B) the Adjutant of The American Legion, as defined in the 
        constitution and bylaws of The American Legion; and
        (2) reviewed by the Citizens Commemorative Coin 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) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins minted 
under this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 
2019.
SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.
    (a) Sale Price.--The coins issued under this Act shall be sold by 
the Secretary at a price based upon 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 described under 
    section 3(a)(2).
        (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 American Legion for costs related to--
        (1) promoting the importance of and caring for those who have 
    served in uniform, ensuring they receive proper health care and 
    disability benefits earned through military service;
        (2) promoting the importance of, and caring for, those who are 
    still serving in the Armed Forces;
        (3) promoting the importance of maintaining the patriotic 
    values, morals, culture, and citizenship of the United States; and
        (4) promoting the importance of maintaining strong families, 
    assistance for at-risk children, and activities that promote their 
    healthy and wholesome development.
    (c) 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 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.
    (d) Audit.--The recipient described under subsection (b) shall be 
subject to the audit requirements of section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, 
United States Code, with regard to the amounts received under 
subsection (b).
SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES.
    The Secretary shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure 
that--
        (1) minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result in 
    any net cost to the United States Government; and
        (2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, are disbursed to 
    the recipient designated in section 7 until the total cost of 
    designing and issuing all of the coins authorized by this Act 
    (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead 
    expenses, marketing, and shipping) is recovered by the United 
    States Treasury, consistent with sections 5112(m) and 5134(f) of 
    title 31, United States Code.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.