[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 80 (Wednesday, May 8, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3627-S3628]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             BILLIE JEAN KING CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged from 
further consideration and the Senate proceed to the immediate 
consideration of S. 2861.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 2861) to award a Congressional Gold Medal to 
     Billie Jean King, an American icon, in recognition of a 
     remarkable life devoted to championing equal rights for all, 
     in sports and in society.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. SCHUMER. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read 
a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made 
and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 2861) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, 
was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

                                S. 2861

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

[[Page S3628]]

  


     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Billie Jean King 
     Congressional Gold Medal Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) Billie Jean King, born Billie Jean Moffitt on November 
     22, 1943, in Long Beach, California, demonstrated athletic 
     prowess from a young age. She was introduced to tennis at the 
     age of 11, and soon after, Billie Jean purchased her first 
     tennis racket using money she earned working various jobs in 
     her neighborhood.
       (2) Billie Jean broke numerous barriers to become a number 
     one professional tennis player. She dominated women's tennis 
     with 39 Grand Slam singles, doubles, and mixed doubles 
     titles, including a record 20 championships at Wimbledon. She 
     also was a member of 3 World TeamTennis championship teams.
       (3) After growing in prominence, Billie Jean used her 
     platform as a celebrity to fight for equal rights and 
     opportunities for equality for all in sports, and society, in 
     the United States.
       (4) Billie Jean played an instrumental role in the passage 
     of title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 (20 
     U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), a law that mandates equal funding for 
     women's and men's sports programs in schools and colleges. 
     This legislation has unlocked a world of opportunities for 
     girls and women in education and sports.
       (5) During Billie Jean's career, the pay difference between 
     prize money for men and women in tennis continued to expand. 
     By the early 1970s, the pay gap in prize money reached ratios 
     of as much as 12 to 1. Fewer and fewer tournaments were 
     hosting women's events. Billie Jean harnessed the energy of 
     the women's rights movement to create a women's tennis tour 
     that would elevate women's tennis and establish pay equity 
     within the sport. Along with 8 other women tennis players, 
     she formed an independent women's professional tennis 
     circuit, the Virginia Slims Series.
       (6) In 1973, Billie Jean founded the Women's Tennis 
     Association, today's principal governing body for women's 
     professional tennis.
       (7) Billie Jean helped found womenSports magazine and 
     founded the Women's Sports Foundation. Both have been at the 
     forefront of advancing women's voice in sports.
       (8) Billie Jean successfully lobbied for equal prize money 
     for men and women at the 1973 US Open Tennis Championships. 
     It would take another 34 years for the other 3 major 
     tournaments to all offer equal prize money.
       (9) In 1973, Billie Jean played a tennis match against 
     Bobby Riggs, a former World Number 1 player who sought to 
     undermine the credibility and prominence of women in sports. 
     Billie Jean defeated Riggs in what became a firm declaration 
     of women's role in sports and society.
       (10) Billie Jean King was the first tennis player and woman 
     to be named Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year, 
     one of the ``100 Most Important Americans of the 20th 
     Century'' by LIFE magazine, was the recipient of the 1999 
     Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, and has been admitted to the 
     International Women's Sports Hall of Fame, the International 
     Tennis Hall of Fame, and the National Women's Hall of Fame.
       (11) In 2006, the United States Tennis Association 
     recognized Billie Jean's immeasurable impact on the sport of 
     tennis by renaming the site of the US Open in her honor as 
     the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, which is 
     located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, New York. 
     This was the first time a major sporting complex was named 
     after a woman.
       (12) In 2009, Billie Jean was awarded the Presidential 
     Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United 
     States, by President Barack Obama for her impactful work 
     advocating for the rights of women. She was the first female 
     athlete to receive this honor.
       (13) In 2014, Billie Jean King founded the Billie Jean King 
     Leadership Initiative to empower companies and individuals to 
     create inclusive work environments that celebrate and promote 
     diversity and equality in the workplace.
       (14) In 2020, Fed Cup, the world cup of women's tennis, was 
     renamed the Billie Jean King Cup, making it the first global 
     team competition to be named after a woman.
       (15) Billie Jean King's extraordinary courage, leadership, 
     and activism helped propel the women's movement forward, and 
     open doors for countless people in the United States. On and 
     off the court, Billie Jean has served as an inspiration to 
     millions of people the world over. Few women and men have had 
     a greater impact on their sport and on our society than 
     Billie Jean King.

     SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

       (a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate 
     shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on 
     behalf of Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design to 
     Billie Jean King, in recognition of her contribution to the 
     United States and her courageous and groundbreaking 
     leadership advancing equal rights for women in athletics, 
     education, and our society.
       (b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation 
     described in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
     (referred to in this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a 
     gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions 
     to be determined by the Secretary. The design shall bear an 
     image of, and inscription of the name of, Billie Jean King.

     SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

       The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of 
     the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 at a price 
     sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor, 
     materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.

     SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.

       (a) National Medals.--Medals struck under this Act are 
     national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, 
     United States Code.
       (b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of section 5134 and 
     section 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all medals 
     struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic 
     items.

     SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

       (a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to 
     be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise 
     Fund such amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of 
     the medals struck under this Act.
       (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of 
     duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 4 shall be 
     deposited into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.

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