[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7861 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7861

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemorative coins in 
                  recognition of Paul Laurence Dunbar.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 2, 2024

  Ms. Norton introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemorative coins in 
                  recognition of Paul Laurence Dunbar.

    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 ``Paul Laurence Dunbar Commemorative 
Coin Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of the first influential 
        African-American poets in American literature, writing such 
        classics as ``Majors and Minors'' and ``Lyrics of Lowly Life'', 
        and composing the lyrics to ``In Dahomey'', the first all-
        African-American musical produced on Broadway;
            (2) Paul Laurence Dunbar was born on June 27, 1872, to 
        freed slaves Joshua and Matilda Murphy Dunbar;
            (3) Paul Laurence Dunbar first published a series of poems 
        at age 14 in the Dayton Herald;
            (4) in 1893, Paul Laurence Dunbar published a series of 
        poems in a work entitled ``Oak and Ivy'';
            (5) by the late 1890s, Paul Laurence Dunbar had become a 
        prominent author, having had his poems published in such major 
        national newspapers and magazines as The New York Times;
            (6) over his career, Paul Laurence Dunbar published more 
        collections of poems, short stories, and novels;
            (7) Paul Laurence Dunbar died on February 9, 1906, at 33 
        years of age;
            (8) Paul Laurence Dunbar Senior High School (hereafter 
        referred to as Dunbar High School) was established in the 
        District of Columbia in 1870 as the Preparatory High School for 
        Colored Youth, and was the first public high school for 
        African-American students in the country;
            (9) the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth was 
        renamed in 1916 in honor of Paul Laurence Dunbar;
            (10) the Dunbar Alumni Federation (hereafter in this Act 
        referred to as the ``Federation'') was organized in 2002 to 
        provide scholarships and other financial support to students 
        and graduates of Dunbar High School;
            (11) the Federation promotes and supports scholarship 
        efforts, along with school and community activities;
            (12) the Federation leverages the prestige of Dunbar High 
        School and its distinguished alumni to enhance the education of 
        Dunbar High School students;
            (13) the Federation promotes Dunbar High School alumni from 
        more than 35 years of graduating classes through their 
        scholarship efforts, community activities, and other endeavors 
        to support Dunbar High School;
            (14) the Federation helps finance such student development 
        activities as the Debate Team, the Band, the Ski Team, the 
        Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps, and athletics;
            (15) the Federation funds faculty, staff, and parent 
        appreciation and development activities; and
            (16) the Federation collects and assembles artifacts and 
        memorabilia from alumni for historical and legacy displays to 
        chronicle Dunbar High School's rich history.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Denominations.--In recognition and celebration of Paul Laurence 
Dunbar, 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 Paul Laurence Dunbar.
    (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 ``2026''; 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 Federation; 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, 
2026.

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.
            (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 Federation.
    (c) Exemption to Commemorative Coin Program Limitations.--This Act 
shall--
            (1) not be subject to section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, 
        United States Code; and
            (2) not be a ``commemorative coin program'' for purposes of 
        such section.
    (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.
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