[112th Congress Public Law 201]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]



[[Page 126 STAT. 1479]]

Public Law 112-201
112th Congress

                                 An Act


 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
          of Mark Twain. <<NOTE: Dec. 4, 2012 -  [H.R. 2453]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Mark Twain 
Commemorative Coin Act. 31 USC 5112 note.>> 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Mark Twain Commemorative Coin Act''.
SEC. 2. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Samuel Clemens--better known to the world as Mark 
        Twain--was a unique American voice whose literary work has had a 
        lasting effect on our Nation's history and culture.
            (2) Mark Twain remains one of the best known Americans in 
        the world with over 6,500 editions of his books translated into 
        75 languages.
            (3) Mark Twain's literary and educational legacy remains 
        strong even today, with nearly every book he wrote still in 
        print, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of 
        Huckleberry Finn--both of which have never gone out of print 
        since they were first published over a century ago.
            (4) In the past 2 decades alone, there have been more than 
        100 books published and over 250 doctoral dissertations written 
        on Mark Twain's life and work.
            (5) Even today, Americans seek to know more about the life 
        and work of Mark Twain, as people from around the world and 
        across all 50 States annually flock to National Historic 
        Landmarks like the Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford, CT, 
        and the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum in Hannibal, MO.
            (6) Mark Twain's work is remembered today for addressing the 
        complex social issues facing America at the turn of the century, 
        including the legacy of the Civil War, race relations, and the 
        economic inequalities of the ``Gilded Age''.
            (7) Today Mark Twain's work lives on through educational 
        institutions throughout the United States, such as the Mark 
        Twain Project at the Bancroft Library of the University of 
        California, Berkeley, California, and the Center for Mark Twain 
        Studies at Elmira College, in Elmira, New York.

[[Page 126 STAT. 1480]]

SEC. 3. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Denominations.--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 100,000 $5 coins, which 
        shall--
                    (A) weigh 8.359 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent alloy.
            (2) $1 silver coins.--Not more than 350,000 $1 coins, which 
        shall--
                    (A) weigh 26.73 grams;
                    (B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
                    (C) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper.

    (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 section 5134 of title 31, 
United States Code, all coins minted under this Act shall be considered 
to be numismatic items.
SEC. 4. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  DESIGN OF COINS.

    (a) Design Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this 
        Act shall be emblematic of the life and legacy of Mark Twain.
            (2) Designation 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 ``2016''; and
                    (C) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God 
                We Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E 
                Pluribus Unum''.

    (b) Selection.--The design for the coins minted under this Act shall 
be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary after consultation with the 
        Commission of Fine Arts and the Board of the Mark Twain House 
        and Museum; and
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.
SEC. 5. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  ISSUANCE OF COINS.

    (a) Quality of Coins.--Coins minted under this Act shall be issued 
in uncirculated and proof qualities.
    (b) Mint Facility.--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 minted under 
this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 2016.
SEC. 6. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  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

[[Page 126 STAT. 1481]]

            (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. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  SURCHARGES.

    (a) In General.--All sales of coins issued under this Act shall 
include a surcharge of--
            (1) $35 per coin for the $5 coin; and
            (2) $10 per coin for the $1 coin.

    (b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f)(1) 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 as 
follows:
            (1) One-quarter of the surcharges, to the Mark Twain House & 
        Museum in Hartford, Connecticut, to support the continued 
        restoration of the Mark Twain house and grounds, and ensure 
        continuing growth and innovation in museum programming to 
        research, promote and educate on the legacy of Mark Twain.
            (2) One-quarter of the surcharges, to the University of 
        California, Berkeley, California, for the benefit of the Mark 
        Twain Project at the Bancroft Library to support programs to 
        study and promote the legacy of Mark Twain.
            (3) One-quarter of the surcharges, to Elmira College, New 
        York, to be used for research and education purposes.
            (4) One-quarter of the surcharges, to the Mark Twain Boyhood 
        Home and Museum in Hannibal, Missouri, to preserve historical 
        sites related to Mark Twain and help support programs to study 
        and promote his legacy.

    (c) Audits.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall have 
the right to examine such books, records, documents, and other data of 
each of the organizations referred to in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and 
(4) of subsection (b) as may be related to the expenditures of amounts 
paid under such subsection.
    (d) Limitation.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), 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.
SEC. 8. <<NOTE: 31 USC 5112 note.>>  NO NET COST.

    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

[[Page 126 STAT. 1482]]

            (2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, are disbursed 
        to any 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.

    Approved December 4, 2012.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 2453:
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 158 (2012):
            Apr. 16, 18, considered and passed House.
            Sept. 21, considered and passed Senate, amended.
            Nov. 14, 15, House considered and concurred in Senate 
                amendments.

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