[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 175 (Tuesday, November 13, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H13544-H13545]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   ALLOWING EXCEPTION FROM $1 COIN DISPENSING CAPABILITY REQUIREMENT

  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 3703) to amend section 5112(p)(1)(A) of title 31, 
United States Code, to allow an exception from the $1 coin dispensing 
capability requirement for certain vending machines.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3703

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled, That 
     section 5112(p)(1)(A) of title 31, United States Code, is 
     amended to read as follows:
       ``(A) any business operations conducted by any such agency, 
     instrumentality, system, or entity that involve coins or 
     currency will be fully capable of--
       ``(i) accepting $1 coins in connection with such 
     operations; and
       ``(ii) other than vending machines that do not receive 
     currency denominations higher than $1, dispensing $1 coins in 
     connection with such operations; and''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Scott) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott).


                             general leave

  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days within

[[Page H13545]]

which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to 
insert extraneous material therein.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Georgia?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3703. 
This is a very timely and important piece of legislation because as you 
may recall, the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 requires retailers, 
including vending machines that are located on Federal property, to 
both accept and disburse $1 coins by January of 2008. We are talking 
about 7 weeks from now. That brings about the urgency and the 
timeliness of the matter.
  This requirement additionally applies to transit systems, military 
bases, and those that take Federal subsidies. Now, while most vending 
machines are already programmed and able to accept $1 coins, there are 
very few that are programmed to dispense $1 coins. So that is why this 
legislation is needed, to exempt those vending machines from dispensing 
requirements that do not have a reason to dispense the $1 coins in the 
first place.
  So that in effect, Mr. Speaker, if we do not pass this bill, we will 
have unintendedly affected a hindrance of the circulation of the coins 
by compelling them to be stored in vending machines that will never 
dispense them. This legislation targets machines that have only $1 in 
currency and exchange. So you can see there will never be a need for 
the machine to dispense $1 coins.
  We believe that these Presidential $1 coins are very important. They 
should be circulated. The public should circulate them, but certainly 
having them stored in a vending machine from which they will never be 
dispensed is not the way to do that. That is why we need this bill. I 
ask that the House urgently pass this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleague from Georgia in 
support of this legislation. This legislation is simple and direct, and 
as my colleague stated, is necessary. It is basically a technical 
correction for the Presidential $1 Coin Act enacted in December 2005. 
That bill sought to use the mechanism of a regularly changed design on 
the $1 coin to draw that coin into circulation, and it had specific 
language directing that retail operations on Federal property, 
including vending machines, accept and dispense $1 coins. It makes 
sense since the coin is an official form of U.S. exchange, and not to 
handle the coin would be inappropriate.
  But certain vending machines, such as soda machines, only accept 
change and bank notes of no greater value than $1. Logically, there 
would be no reason for these machines to dispense a $1 coin. To convert 
them to do so and to stock them with a stack of coins that never would 
be dispensed clearly would be unnecessary and not intended by the 
original bill.
  Worse, as my friend from Georgia mentioned, oftentimes that cost for 
doing so would fall on our servicemen and women. So there really is no 
point to this change that was mandated, and we can easily fix that 
today.
  Mr. Speaker, the language of this bill exempts solely those $1 
vending machines from the requirement to dispense $1 coins. I urge all 
Members to support this bill, and I commend my colleague from Georgia 
for bringing this bill to the House floor.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers, and I 
urge immediate passage of this bill and transmittal to the Senate.
  Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 3703.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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