II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 409 

To posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of 

Aretha Franklin. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 7, 2019 

Ms. HARRIS (for herself, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. PETERS, Ms. SMITH, Mr. CARPER, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. REED, Mr. KAINE, Mr. MANCHIN, Ms. WARREN, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. BENNET, Mr. 

CARDIN, Mr. JONES, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. 

DUCKWORTH, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mrs. MURRAY, 

Mr. COONS, and Ms. HASSAN) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal in 

commemoration of Aretha Franklin. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Aretha Franklin Con5 gressional Gold Medal Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Aretha Franklin was born on March 25, 

2 1942, in Memphis, Tennessee, and died peacefully at 

3 her home in Detroit, Michigan, surrounded by family 

4 and loved ones, on August 16, 2018. 

5 (2) Aretha Franklin’s musical talents have in6 fluenced generations of musicians and political lead7 ers, creating a legacy that spans an incredible 6 dec8 ades. 

9 (3) Aretha Franklin, dubbed the ‘‘Queen of 

10 Soul’’, was the first woman ever inducted into the 

11 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, was a 2005 recipient 

12 of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and was a 

13 1999 recipient of the National Medal of Arts and 

14 Humanities Award, among other accolades. 

15 (4) Aretha Franklin’s music served as a 1960s 

16 call to action that inspired thousands of individuals 

17 to join civil rights movements and still resonates 

18 across those movements today. 

19 (5) Aretha Franklin’s contributions go beyond 

20 music and the arts. 

21 (6) Aretha Franklin was also a philanthropist 

22 who supported causes that advanced civil rights, 

23 human health, and gender equality. 


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1 (7) Aretha Franklin’s talents instilled hope, up2 lifted generations, and changed the lives of millions 

3 of individuals across the globe. 

4 (8) The City of Detroit shaped Aretha Frank5 lin’s life and music, as her father and church intro6 duced her to local Motown artists. 

7 (9) In return, Aretha Franklin made countless 

8 contributions to the City of Detroit and few people 

9 have played a greater role in shaping a culturally 

10 and socially relevant discography in the United 

11 States than Aretha Franklin. 

12 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

13 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

14 the House of Representatives and the President pro tem15 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 

16 for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of Congress, 

17 of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration 

18 of Aretha Franklin. 

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

20 presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary 

21 of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Sec22 retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, 

23 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec24 retary. 

25 (c) AWARD OF MEDAL.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—After the award of the gold 

2 medal referred to in subsection (a), the gold medal 

3 shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, where 

4 it shall be displayed as appropriate and made avail5 able for research. 

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

7 Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should 

8 make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) 

9 available for display elsewhere, particularly at other 

10 locations and events associated with Aretha Frank11 lin. 

12 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

13 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

14 bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3 under 

15 such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price 

16 sufficient to cover the cost, including labor, materials, 

17 dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, of the gold 

18 medal and any such duplicates. 

19 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

20 (a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—The medals struck under 

21 this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 

22 of title 31, United States Code. 


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1 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 

2 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

3 under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

Æ 


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