H. R. 5671 

One Hundred Sixteenth Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE SECOND SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Friday, 

the third day of January, two thousand and twenty 

An Act 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal, collectively, to the United States Merchant 

Mariners of World War II, in recognition of their dedicated and vital service 

during World War II. 

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 ‘‘Merchant Mariners of World 

War II Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2020’’. 

SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

Congress finds the following: 

(1) 2020 marked the 75th anniversary of Allied victory 

in World War II. 

(2) The United States Merchant Marine (in this section 

referred to as the ‘‘Merchant Marine’’) was integral in providing 

the link between domestic production and the fighting forces 

overseas, providing combat equipment, fuel, food, commodities, 

and raw materials to troops stationed abroad. 

(3) Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King acknowledged the 

indispensability of the Merchant Marine to the victory in a 

1945 letter stating that, without the support of the Merchant 

Marine, ‘‘the Navy could not have accomplished its mission’’. 

(4) President, and former Supreme Commander of the 

Allied Expeditionary Forces, Dwight D. Eisenhower acknowledged that ‘‘through the prompt delivery of supplies and equipment to our armed forces overseas, and of cargoes representing 

economic and military aid to friendly nations, the American 

Merchant Marine has effectively helped to strengthen the forces 

of freedom throughout the world’’. 

(5) Military missions and war planning were contingent 

upon the availability of resources and the Merchant Marine 

played a vital role in this regard, ensuring the efficient and 

reliable transoceanic transport of military equipment and both 

military and civilian personnel. 

(6) The Merchant Marine provided for the successful transport of resources and personnel despite consistent and ongoing 

exposure to enemy combatants from both the air and the sea, 

including from enemy bomber squadrons, submarines, and 

naval mines. 

(7) The efforts of the Merchant Marine were not without 

sacrifices as the Merchant Marine likely bore a higher percapita casualty rate than any of the military branches during 

the war. 
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(8) The Merchant Marine proved to be an instrumental 

asset on an untold number of occasions, participating in every 

landing operation by the United States Marine Corps, from 

Guadalcanal to Okinawa. 

(9) The Merchant Marine provided the bulk tonnage of 

material necessary for the invasion of Normandy, an invasion 

which, according to a 1944 New York Times article, ‘‘would 

not have been possible without the Merchant Marine’’. 

(10) In assessing the performance of the Merchant Marine, 

General Eisenhower stated, ‘‘every man in this Allied command 

is quick to express his admiration for the loyalty, courage, 

and fortitude of the officers and men of the Merchant Marine. 

We count upon their efficiency and their utter devotion to 

duty as we do our own; they have never failed us’’. 

(11) During a September 1944 speech, President Franklin 

D. Roosevelt stated that the Merchant Marine had ‘‘delivered 

the goods when and where needed in every theater of operations 

and across every ocean in the biggest, the most difficult, and 

dangerous transportation job ever undertaken. As time goes 

on, there will be greater public understanding of our merchant 

fleet’s record during this war’’. 

(12) The feats and accomplishments of the Merchant 

Marine are deserving of broader public recognition. 

(13) The United States will be forever grateful and indebted 

to these merchant mariners for their effective, reliable, and 

courageous transport of goods and resources in enemy territory 

throughout theaters of every variety in World War II. 

(14) The goods and resources transported by the Merchant 

Marine saved thousands of lives and enabled the Allied Powers 

to claim victory in World War II. 

(15) The Congressional Gold Medal would be an appropriate 

way to shed further light on the service of the merchant mariners in World War II and the instrumental role they played 

in winning that war. 

(16) Many students of the Merchant Marine Academy lost 

their lives as they sailed through enemy-controlled waters or 

unloaded cargo in overseas combat areas, and, as a result, 

the United States Merchant Marine Academy is the only 

institution among the five Federal academies to be authorized 

to carry a battle standard as part of its color guard. 

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

(a) AWARD AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall 

make appropriate arrangements for the award, on behalf of Congress, of a single gold medal of appropriate design to the United 

States merchant mariners of World War II, in recognition of their 

dedicated and vital service during World War II. 

(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purposes of the award 

described in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (in this 

Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall strike the gold medal 

with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined 

by the Secretary. 

(c) AMERICAN MERCHANT MARINE MUSEUM.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the gold medal 

under subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the 
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American Merchant Marine Museum, where it will be available 

for display as appropriate and available for research. 

(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress that 

the American Merchant Marine Museum should make the gold 

medal given to the Museum under paragraph (1) available 

for display elsewhere, particularly at appropriate locations associated with the United States Merchant Marine and that preference should be given to locations affiliated with the United 

States Merchant Marine. 

SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

Under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, the 

Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold 

medal struck under 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 of title 

31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall 

be considered to be numismatic items. 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.