[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4940 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4940

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
  of the 200th anniversary of the establishment of the Nation's first 
statewide investigative law enforcement agency, the Ranger Division of 
                 the Texas Department of Public Safety.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 31, 2019

  Mr. Flores 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 200th anniversary of the establishment of the Nation's first 
statewide investigative law enforcement agency, the Ranger Division of 
                 the Texas Department of Public Safety.

    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 ``Texas Ranger Division's 200th 
Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Established in 1823, the Texas Ranger Division of the 
        Texas Department of Public Safety is the oldest serving 
        statewide law enforcement agency in the Nation and will 
        commemorate their 200th anniversary in 2023.
            (2) The Texas Rangers began as a multicultural agency, and 
        over two centuries have included Native Americans, Tejanos, 
        Anglo Europeans, African Americans, and Asian Americans serving 
        in all ranks. Women have also served in both field and command 
        ranks.
            (3) Through the centuries, the Texas Rangers have served 
        first as a citizen militia protecting ranches, farms, and 
        settlements against hostile raids; they became frontier law 
        enforcement. After the Civil War they became frontier peace 
        officers protecting against outlaws and banditry and providing 
        law enforcement to new towns and settlements on burgeoning 
        railroad routes and cattle trails. With the turn of the 20th 
        century they became a State Police handling lawlessness in oil 
        boomtowns, violations of Prohibition, and gangsters.
            (4) In 1935, the Texas Rangers were incorporated into one 
        of the first Departments of Public Safety in the Nation. Today, 
        they are internationally respected for conducting major 
        criminal investigations, suppression of organized crime, border 
        reconnaissance, SWAT, bomb squad, special rapid response, 
        crisis negotiation, joint intelligence center management, and 
        investigation of unsolved crimes. Pioneering initiatives such 
        as the interdiction for the protection of children have 
        resulted in invitations from law enforcement agencies 
        throughout the Nation and internationally from Australia to 
        Great Britain to help initiate similar law enforcement 
        initiatives.
            (5) The Texas Rangers have partnered with Federal agencies 
        on numerous public safety and relief initiatives such as in the 
        aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and with the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigations on numerous occasions, including the pursuit of 
        Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934.
            (6) The Texas Rangers are also an icon of American popular 
        culture. Songs, books, and novels have been written about them 
        since the 1840s. They are America's largest and oldest 
        multimedia ``franchise'' dating back to the earliest years of 
        film, radio, and television. They have been featured in more 
        than 225 movies and seven television series. After the Alamo, 
        the Texas Rangers are the best internationally known historical 
        symbol of Texas.
            (7) The Texas Ranger Division Commemorative Coin will be 
        the first commemorative coin to honor the Ranger Division of 
        the Texas Department of Public Safety.
            (8) The United States should pay tribute to the Nation's 
        oldest statewide investigative law enforcement agency, the 
        Ranger Division of the Texas Department of Public Safety, by 
        minting and issuing commemorative coins, as provided in this 
        Act.
            (9) A commemorative coin will bring national and 
        international attention to the lasting legacy of this Nation's 
        statewide investigative law enforcement agency.
            (10) The proceeds from a surcharge on the sale of such 
        commemorative coins will assist the financing of the State 
        museum, charitable organizations, and educational scholarship.

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:
            (1) $5 gold coins.--Not more than 100,000 $5 gold 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 500,000 $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) Design Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this 
        Act shall be emblematic of the 200 years of exemplary and 
        unparalleled achievements of the Texas Ranger Division.
            (2) 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--
                            (i) the mint date ``2023'';
                            (ii) the years ``1823'' and ``2023''; and
                            (iii) the inscription, ``Courage Integrity 
                        Perseverance''; and
                    (C) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God 
                We Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E 
                Pluribus Unum'', and such other inscriptions as the 
                Secretary may determine to be appropriate for the 
                designs of the coins.
            (3) Coin images.--
                    (A) Obverse.--The obverse of the coins issued under 
                this Act shall bear an image of a Texas Ranger badge 
                designed with the word ``Texas'' at the top, a star in 
                the center of the badge, and the word ``Rangers'' at 
                the bottom of the badge emblematic of the Texas Ranger 
                Division and its history.
                    (B) Reverse.--The reverse of the coins issued under 
                this Act shall bear an image emblematic of the Texas 
                Rangers legendary status in America's cultural 
                landscape. The image should depict Texas Rangers on the 
                western frontier, including their geographic, 
                political, or cultural history.
            (4) Realistic and historically accurate depictions.--The 
        images for the designs of coins issued under this Act shall be 
        selected on the basis of the realism and historical accuracy of 
        the images and on the extent to which the images are 
        reminiscent of the dramatic and beautiful artwork on coins of 
        the so-called ``Golden Age of Coinage'' in the United States, 
        at the beginning of the 20th century, with the participation of 
        such noted sculptors and metallic artists as James Earle 
        Fraser, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Victor David Brenner, Adolph A. 
        Weinman, Charles E. Barber, and George T. Morgan.
    (b) Selection.--The design for the coins minted under this Act 
shall be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary, after consultation with the 
        Chief of the Ranger Division of the Texas Department of Public 
        Safety and the Commission of Fine Arts; and
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens 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) Mint Facilities.--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 under this 
Act only during the period beginning on January 1, 2023, and ending on 
December 31, 2023.

SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.

    (a) Sale Price.--The coins issued under this Act 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 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) 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 gold coin.
            (2) A surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 silver coin.
            (3) A surcharge of $3 per coin for the half dollar coin.
    (b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United 
States Code, the Secretary shall promptly distribute all surcharges 
received from the sale of coins issued under this Act as follows:
            (1) The first $2,500,000 available for distribution under 
        this section, to the National Center for Missing & Exploited 
        Children, to further the Center's efforts to provide training, 
        technical assistance, and resources to law enforcement 
        personnel and others who investigate crimes against children, 
        specifically cases of missing and exploited children.
            (2) The next $2,500,000 available for distribution under 
        this section to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial 
        Fund, to further assist the Fund in telling the story of 
        American law enforcement, honoring the fallen, and making it 
        safer for those officers who serve.
            (3) Of amounts available for distribution after the 
        payments under paragraphs (1) and (2)--
                    (A) 50 percent shall be distributed to the Texas 
                Ranger Foundation Scholarship Program for students to 
                pursue higher education.
                    (B) 50 percent shall be distributed to the Texas 
                Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum for the preservation, 
                maintenance, and display of artifacts and documents.
    (c) Audits.--All organizations, associations, and funds 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).
    (d) Limitation.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), no surcharge may 
be included with respect to this 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.

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, shall be 
        disbursed to any 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.
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