[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 93 (Tuesday, June 4, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3197-S3198]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           WOMEN'S SUFFRAGE CENTENNIAL COMMEMORATIVE COIN ACT

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, as in legislative session, I ask 
unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
Affairs be discharged from further consideration of S. 1235 and the 
Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1235) to require the Secretary of the Treasury 
     to mint coins in commemoration of ratification of the 19th 
     Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, giving 
     women in the United States the right to vote.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Barrasso amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to; the bill, 
as amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the 
motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 251) was agreed to as follows:

 (Purpose: To add Esther Hobart Morris to a list of suffrage activists)

       On page 2, line 18, insert ``Esther Hobart Morris,'' before 
     ``and''.

  The bill (S. 1235), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed as follows:

                                S. 1235

       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 ``Women's Suffrage Centennial 
     Commemorative Coin Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       (1) Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organized the 
     first Women's Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York.

[[Page S3198]]

     Sixty-eight women and 32 men signed the Declaration of 
     Sentiments at the Convention in July 1848.
       (2) The Declaration of Sentiments was modeled after the 
     Declaration of Independence and declared that ``all men and 
     women are created equal'', linking women's rights directly to 
     the founding ideals of the United States.
       (3) Suffrage activists, including Elizabeth Cady Stanton, 
     Susan B. Anthony, Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. 
     Wells, Jovita Idar, Inez Millholland, Mary Church Terrell, 
     Anne Dallas Dudley, Carrie Chapman Cat, Alice Paul, Lucy 
     Burns, Esther Hobart Morris, and many others, conducted over 
     900 local, State, and Federal campaigns over a 72-year time 
     span to win women the right to vote.
       (4) On November 6, 1917, New York granted women the right 
     to vote, which was an act that created momentum for the 
     national movement that culminated in the ratification of the 
     19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States 3 
     years later.
       (5) The 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United 
     States (``The Susan B. Anthony Amendment'') guarantees all 
     United States women the right to vote and was passed by the 
     66th Congress of the United States on June 4, 1919.
       (6) On August 9, 1920, right before the ratification period 
     was set to expire, Governor Albert H. Roberts called a 
     special session of the Tennessee General Assembly to consider 
     the amendment. Pro-suffrage and anti-suffrage activists from 
     around the country descended on Nashville, Tennessee, intent 
     on influencing the legislature.
       (7) After the amendment was defeated in a 48-48 tie vote, 
     Tennessee State Representative Harry T. Burn from McMinn 
     County cast the deciding favorable vote after receiving a 
     note from his mother, Phoebe Ensminger Burn, imploring him to 
     vote yes for ratification.
       (8) On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the 36th and final 
     State needed to pass the 19th Amendment, ensuring its 
     ratification pursuant to Article V of the Constitution of the 
     United States.
       (9) The 19th Amendment was ratified on August 26, 1920, 
     when Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby issued a 
     proclamation announcing it has become part of the 
     Constitution of the United States.
       (10) The ratification of the 19th Amendment marked the 
     single largest extension of voting rights in United States 
     history, enfranchising 27,000,000 American women in the 
     United States.
       (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is--
       (1) to honor and commemorate the work of women suffrage 
     activists in the late 19th and early 20th centuries;
       (2) to increase public awareness and appreciation for the 
     history of the women's suffrage movement; and
       (3) to encourage all women in the United States to exercise 
     their hard-won franchise and to become involved in civic life 
     if they so choose.

     SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

       (a) $1 Silver Coins.--The Secretary of the Treasury 
     (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') 
     shall mint and issue not more than 400,000 $1 coins, which 
     shall--
       (1) weigh 26.73 grams;
       (2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
       (3) contain at least 90 percent silver.
       (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 COIN.

       (a) Design Requirements.--
       (1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this 
     Act shall be emblematic of the women who played a vital role 
     in rallying support for the 19th Amendment to the 
     Constitution of the United States.
       (2) Designations 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 ``2020''; and
       (C) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God We 
     Trust'', ``United States of America'', ``E Pluribus Unum.''
       (b) Selection.--The design for the coins minted under this 
     Act shall--
       (1) contain motifs that honor Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth 
     Cady Stanton, Carrie Chapman Catt, Harriet Tubman, Mary 
     Church Terrell, Alice Paul, Lide Meriwether, Ida B. Wells, 
     and other suffrage activists of the late 19th century and 
     early 20th centuries;
       (2) be selected by the Secretary, after consultation with 
     the Smithsonian Institution's American Women's History 
     Initiative, and the Commission of Fine Arts; and
       (3) be 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 
     under this Act only during the period beginning on January 1, 
     2020, and ending on December 31, 2020.

     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 as follows:
       (1) A surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 coin described 
     under section 3(a)(1).
       (b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, 
     United States Code, and section 8(2), all surcharges received 
     by the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act 
     shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the Smithsonian 
     Institution's American Women's History Initiative for the 
     purpose of--
       (1) collecting, studying, and establishing programs 
     relating to women's contributions to various fields and 
     throughout different periods of history that have influenced 
     the direction of the United States; and
       (2) creating exhibitions and programs that recognize 
     diverse perspectives on women's history and contributions.
       (c) Audits.--The Smithsonian Institution's American Women's 
     History Initiative 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, shall be 
     disbursed to any recipient designated in section 7(b) 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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