United States Efficient Currency Act of 1997

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``United States Efficient Currency Act 
of 1997''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress hereby finds the following:
            (1) The Government's inventory of $1 dollar coins bearing 
        the likeness of Susan B. Anthony has declined to 164,100,000 
        (as of February 28, 1997) from 868,000,000 $1 coins minted 
        between 1979 and 1981. This inventory declined by 64,600,000 
        coins in 1996, at which rate the Government's supply of Susan 
        B. Anthony dollar coins will be exhausted before September, 
        1999.
            (2) The depletion of the supply of Susan B. Anthony dollar 
        coins demonstrates the need for a dollar coin, particularly 
        with mass transit authorities, vending machine companies, and 
        similar enterprises and their customers.
            (3) Because of the similar silver color and reeded edge of 
        the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin and the quarter dollar, the 
        Susan B. Anthony dollar coin is not a well designed coin.
            (4) Under current law, the Secretary of the Treasury is 
        required to mint Susan B. Anthony dollar coins to meet the 
        demands of commerce. In order to meet this demand without 
        interruption, the United States Mint will be required to order 
        equipment and materials in 1998 to begin making more Susan B. 
        Anthony dollar coins in early 1999.
            (5) To deter the counterfeiting of United States currency, 
        the Secretary of the Treasury has begun a program to redesign 
        all United States currency. New design $100 Federal reserve 
        notes were issued on March 27, 1996. New design $50 Federal 
        reserve notes will be issued in September 1997. New design $20 
        Federal reserve notes will be issued in May, 1998. The 
        remaining new design Federal reserve notes will be issued at 
        approximately 9-month intervals.
            (6) $1 Federal reserve notes are seldom counterfeited.
            (7) New design $1 Federal reserve notes will cost in excess 
        of 4 cents each to print, and will last, on average, only 17 
        months. Newly designed $1 coins will cost about 8 cents each 
        and will last at least 30 years.
            (8) Over the next 30 years, the American taxpayer will save 
        billions of dollars in materials and manufacturing costs by 
        replacing $1 Federal reserve notes with well designed $1 coins.
            (9) The $1 bill has the same purchasing power as the 
        quarter did in 1970.

SEC. 3. $1 COINS.

    (a) Color and Content.--Section 5112(b) of title 31, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) in the 1st sentence, by striking ``dollar,''; and
            (2) by inserting after the 4th sentence the following new 
        sentence: ``The dollar coin shall be golden in color, have a 
        distinctive edge, have tactile and visual features that make 
        the denomination of the coin readily discernible, be minted and 
        fabricated in the United States, and have similar metallic, 
        anticounterfeiting properties as United States clad coinage in 
        circulation on the date of the enactment of the United States 
        Efficient Currency Act of 1997.''.
    (b) Design.--Section 5112(d)(1) of title 31, United States Code, is 
amended by striking out the 5th and 6th sentences and inserting the 
following new sentence: ``The Secretary of the Treasury shall select 
appropriate designs for the reverse and obverse sides of the dollar 
coin.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--Before the Government's current inventory 
        of $1 coins bearing the likeness of Susan B. Anthony is 
        depleted, the Secretary of the Treasury shall place into 
        circulation $1 coins authorized under subsection (a)(1) of 
        section 5112 of title 31, United States Code, which comply with 
        the requirements of subsections (b) and (d)(1) of such section 
        5112 (as amended by subsections (a) and (b) of this section).
            (2) Numismatic sets.--The Secretary may include coins 
        referred to in paragraph (1) in any numismatic set produced by 
        the United States Mint before the date the coins are placed in 
        circulation.
    (d) Increase Capacity.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
increase capacity at United States Mint facilities to a level that 
would permit the replacement of $1 Federal reserve notes.

SEC. 4. CEASING ISSUANCE OF $1 NOTES.

    (a) Transition Period.--Federal reserve banks may continue to place 
into circulation $1 Federal reserve notes until the earlier of--
            (1) the date as of which the number of Susan B. Anthony 
        coins in circulation and the number of coins in circulation 
        which are minted in accordance with the amendments made by 
        section 3 total 1,000,000,000; or
            (2) January 1, 2001.
    (b) Prohibition on Issuance After Transition Period.--After the 
earlier of the dates referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2) of 
subsection (a), a Federal reserve bank may not order or place into 
circulation any $1 Federal reserve note.
    (c) Exception.--Notwithstanding subsection (b), the Secretary of 
the Treasury shall produce only such Federal reserve notes of $1 
denomination as the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 
orders from time to time to meet the needs of collectors of that 
denomination. Such notes shall be issued by 1 or more Federal reserve 
banks in accordance with section 16 of the Federal Reserve Act and sold 
by the Secretary, in whole or in part, under procedures prescribed by 
the Secretary.

SEC. 5. GENERAL WAIVER OF PROCUREMENT REGULATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), no provision 
of law governing procurement or public contracts shall be applicable to 
the procurement of goods and services necessary for carrying out the 
provisions of this Act.
    (b) Equal Employment Opportunity.--Subsection (a) shall not relieve 
any person entering into a contact under the authority of this Act from 
complying with any law relating to equal employment opportunity.

Summary: United States Efficient Currency Act of 1997 - Amends Federal currency law to prescribe the color and content of one-dollar coins. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) place certain authorized one-dollar coins into circulation before the government's current inventory of one-dollar coins bearing the likeness of Susan B. Anthony is depleted. And (2) increase capacity at US Mint facilities to a level that permits replacement of one-dollar Federal reserve notes. Prohibits a Federal reserve bank from placing into circulation any one-dollar Federal Reserve note after specified deadlines. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to cease regular production of one-dollar Federal Reserve notes .