I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1582 

To require the Secretary of Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of 

the 100 year anniversary of the 1st Infantry Division. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 16, 2017 

Mr. RUSSELL (for himself, Mr. JONES, Mr. FLEISCHMANN, Mr. WALZ, Mr. 

COLE, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KNIGHT, Mrs. HARTZLER, Mr. FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. KELLY of Mississippi, Mr. MARSHALL, and Mr. COLLINS of 

New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the 100 year anniversary of the 1st Infantry Division. 

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 ‘‘Duty First Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

6 The congress finds the following: 

7 (1) The 1st Infantry Division was constituted 

8 on May 24, 1917, and is the first and oldest permaVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Mar 22, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1582.IH H1582

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1 nently established combat division of the United 

2 States Army. 2017 is the centennial of the Division. 

3 (2) The 1st Infantry Division has been in con4 tinuous service since its organization. 

5 (3) The 1st Infantry Division has fought with 

6 distinction in every major conflict since 1917 except 

7 the Korean War, when it was on occupation duty in 

8 Germany. 

9 (4) In World War I, the then-First Division 

10 was the first United States division to arrive in 

11 France. It fired the first American shots of the war, 

12 suffered the first casualties and secured the first 

13 American victory at the Battle of Cantigny in May, 

14 1918. This was also the first modern, combined 

15 arms battle in American history. It fought with dis16 tinction in all subsequent campaigns and, after occu17 pation duty in Germany, was the last combat divi18 sion to return home in 1919. 

19 (5) Five division soldiers received the Medal of 

20 Honor in World War I. 

21 (6) In World War II, the 1 ID was the first to 

22 deploy to Europe. It fought in North Africa and Sic23 ily in 1942 and 1943. General George S. Patton, 

24 Jr., commander of the United States 7th Army in 


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1 the Mediterranean, stated that he would not invade 

2 Sicily without the 1 ID as the assault division. 

3 (7) The 1 ID was the lead assault division on 

4 Omaha beach in Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 

5 1944. Against frightful odds and despite multiple 

6 challenges, it secured a beach head on a day when 

7 failure could have altered the outcome of the war. 

8 (8) The 1 ID played pivotal roles in the libera9 tion of France and Belgium; the Battle of the Bulge; 

10 the crossing of the Rhine River; and the invasion 

11 and defeat of Nazi Germany. After the war, the Di12 vision supported and secured the International War 

13 Crimes Tribunal at Nuremburg, Germany, guarding 

14 infamous Nazi officials during the courtroom pro15 ceedings. 

16 (9) Seventeen division soldiers received the 

17 Medal of Honor in World War II. 

18 (10) The 1 ID was the only United States com19 bat division in Europe from 1946 to 1951. It re20 turned to the United States and Fort Riley, KS, in 

21 1955. 

22 (11) The 1 ID was one of the first 2 combat 

23 divisions deployed to Vietnam in 1965. There it de24 fended the vital Highway 13 corridor against enemy 

25 infiltration from Cambodia to the capital at Saigon. 


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1 It fought gallantly in Operation Junction City, the 

2 largest operation of the war, in 1967; and in all 3 

3 waves of the Tet Offensive in 1968. 

4 (12) Twelve division soldiers received the Medal 

5 of Honor in Vietnam. 

6 (13) The 1 ID deterred Soviet aggression 

7 against NATO Europe from 1970 to 1990 with a 

8 brigade in Germany and the rest of the division de9 ploying there annually from Fort Riley in RE10 FORGER exercises that demonstrated United States 

11 capability and resolve until the Cold War ended. 

12 (14) The 1 ID deployed to Saudi Arabia in 

13 1991 in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. 

14 It attacked to breach the Iraqi defenses, raced 

15 across the desert with the United States VIIth 

16 Corps, destroying the Iraqi Republican Guard 

17 Tawakalna Division. 

18 (15) The 1 ID enforced international peace 

19 agreements in Bosnia for 31 months between 1996 

20 and 2000; for 4 months in Macedonia (FYROM) in 

21 1999; and for 22 months in Kosovo between 1999 

22 and 2003. 

23 (16) The 1 ID deployed to Iraq in 2004 to 

24 2005 in OIF II, the initial occupation of Iraq, and 

25 helped achieve the first free and fair elections in the 


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1 history of Iraq. Its brigade combat teams and other 

2 elements deployed multiple times to Iraq and Af3 ghanistan between 2003 and 2014. 

4 (17) The 1 ID provided the first ‘‘regionally 

5 aligned force’’ (RAF) to the United States Africa 

6 Command and provided military assistance to friend7 ly governments across the continent of Africa. 

8 (18) To combat the growing ISIS threat, 1 ID 

9 soldiers have deployed to Iraq and Kuwait to assist 

10 the Iraqi Security Forces and other friendly coun11 tries in that vital and unstable region. 

12 (19) The 1 ID will be deployed to Iraq, Afghan13 istan, and Korea in 2016 and 2017, its centennial 

14 year. 

15 (20) Thirty-six soldiers have been decorated 

16 with the Medal of Honor, and countless others have 

17 distinguished themselves in combat. 

18 (21) The 1st Infantry Division has earned sev19 eral unit decorations, including 2 Meritorious Unit 

20 Commendations, 3 French Croix de Guerre, 1 Bel21 gian Fourragere, Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gal22 lantry with Palm, 1 Republic of Vietnam Civil Ac23 tion Honor Medal, and was cited twice in the Order 

24 of the Day of the Belgian Army. 


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1 (22) The 1st Infantry Division has served the 

2 United States with great valor and distinction since 

3 its organization, living up to its motto, ‘‘No mission 

4 too difficult, no sacrifice too great—Duty First’’. 

5 SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATION. 

6 (a) DENOMINATIONS.—The Secretary of Treasury 

7 (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 

8 mint the issue the following coins: 

9 (1) $5 GOLD COINS.—Not more than 20,000 $5 

10 coins, which shall— 

11 (A) weigh 8.359 grams; 

12 (B) have a diameter of .850 inches; and 

13 (C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent 

14 alloy. 

15 (2) $1 SILVER COINS.—Not more than 100,000 

16 $1 coins, which shall— 

17 (A) weigh 26.73 grams; 

18 (B) have the diameter of 1.50 inches; and 

19 (C) contain not less than 90 percent silver. 

20 (3) HALF-DOLLAR CLAD COINS.—Not more 

21 than 200,000 half-dollar coins which shall— 

22 (A) weight 11.34 grams; 

23 (B) have a diameter of 1.205 inches; and 


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1 (C) be minted to the specifications for half 

2 dollar coins contained in section 5112(b) of title 

3 31, United States Code. 

4 (b) LEGAL TENDER.—The coins minted under this 

5 Act shall be legal tender, as provided in section 5103 of 

6 title 31, United States Code. 

7 (c) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For the purposes of section 

8 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all coins minted 

9 under this Act shall be considered to numismatic items. 

10 SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS. 

11 (a) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The design of the coins 

13 minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the 

14 100 year anniversary of the 1st Infantry Division. 

15 (2) DESIGNATION AND INSCRIPTIONS.—On 

16 each coin minted under this Act there shall be— 

17 (A) a designation of the value of the coin; 

18 (B) an inscription of the year 2017; and 

19 (C) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’, 

20 ‘‘In God We Trust’’, ‘‘United States of Amer21 ica’’, and ‘‘E Pluribus Unum’’. 

22 (b) SELECTION.—The design for the coins minted 

23 under this Act shall be— 


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1 (1) selected by the secretary after consultation 

2 with the Society of the 1st Infantry Division and the 

3 U.S. Army Center of Military History; and 

4 (2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory 

5 Committee. 

6 SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS. 

7 (a) QUALITY OF COINS.—Coins minted under this 

8 Act shall be issued in uncirculated and proof qualities. 

9 (b) MINT FACILITY.—Only the West Point Mint may 

10 be used to strike any particular quality of the coins minted 

11 under this Act. 

12 (c) PERIOD FOR ISSUANCE.—The Secretary may 

13 issue coins minted under this Act only during the 1-year 

14 period beginning on January 2018. 

15 SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS. 

16 (1) SALE PRICE.—The coins issued under this 

17 Act shall be sold by the Secretary at a price equal 

18 to the sum of— 

19 (A) the face value of the coins; 

20 (B) the surcharge provided in section 7(a) 

21 with respect to such coins; and 

22 (C) the cost of designing and issuing the 

23 coins (including labor, material, dies, use of ma24 chinery, overhead expenses, marketing, and 

25 shipping). 


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1 (2) BULK SALES.—The Secretary shall make 

2 bulk sales of the coins issued under this Act at a 

3 reasonable discount. 

4 (3) PREPAID ORDERS.—The Secretary shall ac5 cept prepaid orders for the coins minted under this 

6 Act before the issuance of such coins. 

7 SEC. 7. SURCHARGES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—All sales of coins issued under this 

9 Act shall include a surcharge of— 

10 (1) $35 per coin for the $5 coin; 

11 (2) $10 per coin for the $1 coin; and 

12 (3) $5 per coin for the half-dollar coin. 

13 (b) DISTRIBUTION.—Subject to section 5134 (f)(1) 

14 of title 31, United States Code, all surcharges received by 

15 the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act 

16 shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the Society of 

17 the 1st Infantry Division for renovation of existing 1st In18 fantry Division Memorial located in the District of Colum19 bia. 

20 (c) AUDITS.—The society of the 1st Infantry Division 

21 shall be subject to the audit requirements of section 

22 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, with regard 

23 to the amounts received under subsection (b). 

24 (d) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 

25 no surcharge may be included with respect to the issuance 


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1 under this Act of any coin during a calendar year if, as 

2 of the time of such issuance, the issuance of such coin 

3 would result in the number of commemorative coin pro4 grams issued during such year to exceed the annual 2 coin 

5 commemorative coin program issuance limitation under 

6 section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, United State Code (as in 

7 effect on the date of the enactment of this Act). The Sec8 retary of the Treasury may issue guidance to carry out 

9 this subsection. 

Æ 


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