[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2321 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2321

      To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a coin in 
 commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Negro 
                           Leagues baseball.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 30, 2019

 Mr. Blunt (for himself and Mr. Kaine) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, 
                           and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a coin in 
 commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Negro 
                           Leagues baseball.

    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 ``Negro Leagues Baseball Centennial 
Commemorative Coin Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the 
        establishment of the Negro National League, a professional 
        baseball league formed in response to African-American players 
        being banned from the major leagues.
            (2) On February 13, 1920, Andrew ``Rube'' Foster convened a 
        meeting of 8 independent African-American baseball team owners 
        at the Paseo YMCA in Kansas City, Missouri, to form a ``league 
        of their own,'' establishing the Negro National League, the 
        first successful, organized professional African-American 
        baseball league in the United States.
            (3) Soon, additional leagues formed in eastern and southern 
        States.
            (4) The Negro Leagues would operate for 40 years until 
        1960.
            (5) The story of the Negro Leagues is a story of strong-
        willed athletes who forged a glorious history in the midst of 
        an inglorious era of segregation in the United States.
            (6) The passion of the Negro Leagues players for the 
        ``National Pastime'' would not only change the game, but also 
        the United States.
            (7) The creation of the Negro Leagues provided a playing 
        field for more than 2,600 African-American and Hispanic 
        baseball players to showcase their world-class baseball 
        abilities.
            (8) The Negro Leagues introduced an exciting brand of 
        baseball that was in stark contrast to Major League Baseball.
            (9) A fast, aggressive style of play attracted black and 
        white fans who sat together to watch those games at a time when 
        it was virtually unheard of to interact socially in such a way.
            (10) Negro Leagues baseball would become a catalyst for 
        economic development across the United States in major urban 
        centers such as Kansas City, St. Louis, New York, Memphis, 
        Baltimore, Washington, DC, Chicago, and Atlanta.
            (11) The Negro Leagues pioneered ``Night Baseball'' in 
        1930, 5 years before Major League Baseball, and would introduce 
        game-changing innovations such as shin guards and the batting 
        helmet.
            (12) The Negro Leagues helped make the National Pastime a 
        global game as players from the Negro Leagues--
                    (A) were the first people from the United States to 
                play in many Spanish-speaking countries; and
                    (B) introduced professional baseball to the 
                Japanese in 1927.
            (13) Jackie Robinson, a military veteran and former member 
        of the Negro Leagues' Kansas City Monarchs, would break Major 
        League Baseball's color barrier on April 15, 1947, with the 
        Brooklyn Dodgers, paving the way for other African-American and 
        Hispanic baseball players.
            (14) The Negro Leagues were born out of segregation yet 
        would become a driving force for social change in the United 
        States.
            (15) The Negro Leagues produced future Major League 
        Baseball stars, including Leroy ``Satchel'' Paige, Larry Doby, 
        Willie Mays, Henry Aaron, Ernie Banks, and Roy Campanella.
            (16) The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum was established in 
        Kansas City, Missouri, in 1990--
                    (A) to save from extinction a precious piece of 
                Americana and baseball history; and
                    (B) to use the many life lessons of the powerful 
                story of triumph over adversity of Negro Leagues 
                players to promote tolerance, diversity, and inclusion.
            (17) In 2006, Congress granted National Designation to the 
        Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, recognizing it as ``America's 
        Home'' for Negro Leagues baseball history.

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 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 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 shall be emblematic of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum 
        and its mission to promote tolerance, diversity, and inclusion.
            (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 the year ``2021''; 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 
        Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the Commission of Fine Arts; 
        and
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage 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 minted 
under this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 
2021.

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) 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 issued under this Act shall 
include a surcharge of--
            (1) $35 per coin for the $5 coin;
            (2) $10 per coin for the $1 coin; and
            (3) $5 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 shall be promptly paid by the 
Secretary to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum for educational and 
outreach programs and exhibits.
    (c) Audits.--The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum 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 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 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.

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 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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