[House Report 108-474]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
108th Congress Rept. 108-474
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session Part 2
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MARINE CORPS 230TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATIVE COIN ACT
_______
July 6, 2004.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Thomas, from the Committee on Ways and Means, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 3277]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Ways and Means, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 3277), to require the Secretary of the Treasury to
mint coins in commemoration of the 230th anniversary of the
United States Marine Corps, and to support construction of the
Marine Corps Heritage Center, having considered the same,
report favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that
the bill as amended do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Summary and Background............................................2
II. Explanation of the Bill...........................................2
III.Votes of the Committee............................................3
IV. Budget Effects of the Bill........................................4
V. Other Matters To Be Discussed Under the Rules of the House........5
The amendment (stated in terms of the page and line numbers
of the introduced bill) is as follows:
Page 5, after line 25 (at the end of section 6), add the
following new subsection:
(e) Limitation.--Notwithstanding subsection (b), 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.
I. SUMMARY AND BACKGROUND
A. Purpose and Summary
The bill, H.R. 3277, as amended, contains provisions that
direct the U.S. Mint to produce a coin to commemorate the 230th
anniversary of the founding of the United States Marine Corps
and permit a surcharge to be collected on such coin. However,
such surcharges may be collected only with respect to two
commemorative coin programs per year.
B. Background and Need for Legislation
The provisions approved by the Committee reflect the need
to enforce the limitation established in the Commemorative Coin
Reform Act of 1996 that commemorative coins from no more than
two commemorative coin programs carrying surcharges be issued
per year.
C. Legislative History
The House Committee on Ways and Means marked up H.R. 3277
on June 23, 2004, and ordered the bill, as amended, favorably
reported by voice vote.
II. EXPLANATION OF THE BILL
PRESENT LAW
The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to issue
commemorative coins under the United States Commemorative Coin
Act of 1996,\1\ as amended, and specific statutes authorizing
the issuance of coins under a commemorative coin program. A
statute authorizing a commemorative coin program generally
includes a provision establishing authority for the Secretary
to impose a surcharge with respect to that program. Proceeds of
the surcharge are to be used for the purposes authorized by the
commemorative coin program authorizing legislation. Under
present law, effective January 1, 1999, the Secretary may mint
and issue commemorative coins during any calendar year with
respect to not more than two commemorative coin programs.\2\
This limitation applies to coin programs without regard to
whether a surcharge is imposed.
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\1\ Pub. L. No. 104-329.
\2\ 31 U.S.C. 5112.
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REASONS FOR CHANGE
The Committee understands that, since 1982, 42 different
commemorative coins have been produced and they have generated
approximately $430 million in surcharges. Changes enacted under
the Commemorative Coin Reform Act of 1996 provide that the
Federal Government may retain surcharges if the recipient
organization does not meet certain requirements, e.g., matching
funds. The surcharges raise revenue for the Federal Government
that is used to fund various programs and organizations as
provided in the authorizing legislation. The Commemorative Coin
Reform Act of 1996 also provided that there would be a limit of
no more than two commemorative coins issued annually. Because
commemorative coins are used to raise revenue for the Federal
Government, the Committee believes it is appropriate to enforce
the limitation of no more than two commemorative coin programs
per year by providing that no surcharge may be collected on any
commemorative coin issued as part of more than two
commemorative coin programs in any calendar year.
EXPLANATION OF PROVISION
H.R. 3277, as amended by the Committee, provides for the
issuance of a coin to commemorate the 230th anniversary of the
United States Marine Corps. The bill provides that the
Secretary shall mint and issue a one-dollar coin that shall be
legal tender. The bill provides that all sales of the coins
shall include a surcharge of ten dollars per coin. Under the
bill, all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of
coins issued under the bill shall be paid to the Marine Corps
Heritage Foundation for the purposes of construction of the
Marine Corps Heritage Center.
The bill, as amended, further provides that no surcharge
may be included with respect to the issuance of coins under
H.R. 3277, the ``Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative
Coin Act,'' 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 limitation of two such commemorative coin
programs under section 5112(m)(1) of Title 31 of the United
States Code. The bill provides that the Secretary of the
Treasury may issue guidance to carry out the provision. The
Secretary may issue coins minted under the bill only during the
period beginning on January 1, 2005, and ending on December 31,
2005. Thus, if in 2005, prior to the issuance of the Marine
Corps commemorative coin, commemorative coins have been issued
under two other commemorative coin programs for which a
surcharge was included, then, under the bill as amended, the
Marine Corp commemorative coin would have to be issued without
a surcharge.
EFFECTIVE DATE
The provision is effective on the date of enactment.
III. VOTES OF THE COMMITTEE
In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the following statements are made
concerning the votes of the Committee on Ways and Means in its
consideration of the bill, H.R. 3277.
MOTION TO REPORT THE BILL
The bill, H.R. 3277, as amended was ordered favorably
reported by voice vote (with a quorum being present).
IV. BUDGET EFFECTS OF THE BILL
A. Committee Estimate of Budgetary Effects
In compliance with clause 3(d)(2) of the rule XIII of the
Rules of the House of Representatives, the following statement
is made concerning the effects on the budget of the revenue
provisions of the bill, H.R. 3277 as reported.
The Committee agrees with the estimate prepared by CBO
which is included below.
B. Statement Regarding New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures Budget
Authority
In compliance with clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee states that the
bill involves no new or increased budget authority.
C. Cost Estimate Prepared by the Congressional Budget Office
In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, requiring a cost estimate
prepared by the CBO, the following statement by CBO is
provided.
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, June 29, 2004.
Hon. William ``Bill'' M. Thomas,
Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3277, the Marine
Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew
Pickford.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth M. Robinson
(For Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director).
Enclosure.
H.R. 3277--Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act
H.R. 3277 would authorize the U.S. Mint to produce a $1
silver coin in calendar year 2005 to commemorate the 230th
anniversary of the United States Marine Corps. The legislation
would specify a surcharge of $10 on the sale of each coin and
would designate the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation, a
nonprofit entity, as the recipient of the income from the
surcharge. CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 3277 would have no
significant net impact on direct spending over the 2004-2009
period.
Sales from the coins that would be authorized by H.R. 3277
could raise as much as $5 million in surcharges if the Mint
sells the maximum number of authorized coins. Recent
commemorative coin sales, however, suggest that receipts would
be about $3 million. Under current law, the Mint must ensure
that it does not lose money producing commemorative coins
before transferring any surcharges to a recipient organization.
CBO expects that those receipts from such surcharges would be
transferred to the foundation in fiscal year 2006.
H.R. 3277 could limit the collection of surcharges from
more than two commemorative coins in any calendar year.
According to the Mint there are no commemorative coins
scheduled to be issued in 2005, so we expect this provision
would not reduce the collection or spending of surcharges for
the Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative Coin.
H.R. 3277 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, and
would not affect state, local, or tribal governments.
On June 22, 2004, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S.
894, the Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act,
as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs on June 17, 2004. On March 22, 2004,
CBO transmitted a costs estimate for H.R. 3277, as ordered
reported by the House Committee on Financial Services on March
17, 2004. The three pieces of legislation are similar and our
cost estimates are the same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew
Pickford. This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine,
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
D. Macroeconomic Impact Analysis
In compliance with clause 3(h)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the following statement is
made by the Joint Committee on Taxation with respect to the
provisions of the bill amending the Internal Revenue Code of
1986: The effects of the bill on economic activity are so small
as to be incalculable within the context of a model of the
aggregate economy.
V. OTHER MATTERS TO BE DISCUSSED UNDER THE RULES OF THE HOUSE
A. Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations
With respect to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives (relating to oversight findings),
the Committee advises that it was a result of the Committee's
oversight review concerning Federal commemorative coin programs
that the Committee concluded that it is appropriate and timely
to enact the revenue provision included in the bill as
reported.
B. Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the Committee establishes the
following performance related goals and objectives for this
legislation:
The Secretary of the Treasury shall use the authority
granted by this legislation to mint a commemorative coin
emblematic of the United States Marine Corps and transfer the
proceeds from the sale of those coins to the Marine Corps
Heritage Foundation.
C. Constitutional Authority Statement
With respect to clause 3(d)(1) of the rule XIII of the
Rules of the House of Representatives (relating to
Constitutional Authority), the Committee states that the
Committee's action in reporting this bill is derived from
Article I of the Constitution, Section 8 (``The Congress shall
have Power To Lay and Collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and
Excises * * *'').
D. Information Relating to Unfunded Mandates
This information is provided in accordance with section 423
of the Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995 (P.L. 104-4).
The Committee has determined that the revenue provisions of
the bill do not impose a Federal intergovernmental mandate on
State, local, or tribal governments.
E. Applicability of House Rule XXI 5(b)
Rule XXI 5(b) of the Rules of the House of Representatives
provides, in part, that ``A bill or joint resolution,
amendment, or conference report carrying a Federal income tax
rate increase may not be considered as passed or agreed to
unless so determined by a vote of not less than three-fifths of
the Members voting, a quorum being present.'' The Committee has
carefully reviewed the provisions of the bill, and states that
the provisions of the bill do not involve any Federal income
tax rate increases within the meaning of the rule.
F. Tax Complexity Analysis
Section 4022(b) of the Internal Revenue Service Reform and
Restructuring Act of 1998 (the ``IRS Reform Act'') requires the
Joint Committee on Taxation (in consultation with the Internal
Revenue Service and the Department of the Treasury) to provide
a tax complexity analysis. The complexity analysis is required
for all legislation reported by the Senate Committee on
Finance, the House Committee on Ways and Means, or any
committee of conference if the legislation includes a provision
that directly or indirectly amends the Internal Revenue Code
(the ``Code'') and has widespread applicability to individuals
or small businesses.
The staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation has determined
that a complexity analysis is not required under section
4022(b) of the IRS Reform Act because the bill contains no
provisions that directly or indirectly amend the Internal
Revenue Code.