I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1399 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal collectively to the Buffalo Soldier 

regiments, authorized by Congress in 1866 to serve in the United States 

Armed Forces, in recognition of their superior, dedicated, and vital 

service to our Nation. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 26, 2021 

Mr. BROWN (for himself and Mr. KIM of New Jersey) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in 

addition to the Committees on House Administration, and the Budget, 

for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 

for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 

committee concerned 

A BILL 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal collectively to the 

Buffalo Soldier regiments, authorized by Congress in 

1866 to serve in the United States Armed Forces, in 

recognition of their superior, dedicated, and vital service 

to our Nation. 

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 ‘‘Buffalo Soldiers Con5 gressional Gold Medal Act of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) In 1866, Congress passed the Army Organi4 zation Act which authorized the creation of six all5 Black cavalry and infantry regiments. These regi6 ments remained active until the Army was deseg7 regated in 1951. 

8 (2) According to legend, American Indians 

9 called the Black cavalry troops ‘‘Buffalo Soldiers’’ 

10 because of their dark, curly hair, which resembled a 

11 buffalo’s coat. 

12 (3) The African-American troops accepted the 

13 name with pride and honor, as they were aware of 

14 the buffalo’s fierce bravery and fighting spirit. 

15 (4) The original six regiments melded into the 

16 following four regiments: 

17 (A) The 9th Cavalry Regiment assembled 

18 in New Orleans, Louisiana in August and Sep19 tember of 1866. They were ordered to San An20 tonio, Texas in April, 1867, with the mission to 

21 maintain order and to secure the road from San 

22 Antonia to El Paso. 

23 (B) The 10th Cavalry Regiment gathered 

24 in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas during the sum25 mer of 1867. In August, 1867, they were orVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:47 Mar 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1399.IH H1399

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1 dered to Fort Riley, Kansas with the mission of 

2 protecting the Pacific Railroad. 

3 (C) The 24th Infantry Regiment was orga4 nized in 1869, forming from the 38th and 41st 

5 Colored Infantry Regiments. They served 

6 throughout the Western United States, with the 

7 mission to protect frontier posts and secure 

8 roadways. 

9 (D) The 25th Infantry Regiment assem10 bled at Camp William Penn, Pennsylvania be11 ginning in January 1864. They were assigned 

12 to numerous districts within the Department of 

13 the Gulf with the mission to maintain security. 

14 (5) Buffalo Soldiers also assisted in the protec15 tion of National Parks. They helped fight wildfires 

16 and poachers in the Yosemite and Sequoia National 

17 Parks and served as park rangers in the Sierra Ne18 vada. 

19 (6) In the Spanish American War, all four regi20 ments played key roles and fought with distinction, 

21 despite facing severe discrimination from the locals. 

22 (7) At the start of World War I, the Buffalo 

23 Soldier regiments were dispatched to locations 

24 throughout central United States and into the PaVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:47 Mar 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1399.IH H1399

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1 cific, offering logistics and support behind the front 

2 lines in the American Expeditionary Forces. 

3 (8) During World War II, African-American 

4 soldiers and units continued to serve proudly under 

5 the name ‘‘Buffalo Soldier’’, including the 92nd In6 fantry Division, which was the only Black division 

7 that saw combat in Europe. 

8 (9) In the Korean War, Buffalo Soldier regi9 ments fought throughout the Korean peninsula, 

10 from the defense of the ‘‘Pusan Perimeter’’ to the 

11 counteroffensives which resulted in the end of armed 

12 hostilities and the creation of the Demilitarized 

13 Zone. 

14 (10) Buffalo Soldiers had the lowest military 

15 desertion and court-martial rates of their time. In 

16 recognition of combat valor and their actions beyond 

17 the call of duty, many were awarded the Congres18 sional Medal of Honor. 

19 (11) The Congressional Gold Medal would be 

20 an appropriate way to shed further light on the serv21 ice of the Buffalo Soldiers and the instrumental role 

22 they played in instilling an approach to inclusivity 

23 within our military and the American way of life. 


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1 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

2 (a) AWARD AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the 

3 House of Representatives and the President pro tempore 

4 of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the 

5 award, on behalf of Congress, of a single gold medal of 

6 appropriate design to the Buffalo Soldier regiments, au7 thorized by Congress in 1866 to serve in the United States 

8 Armed Forces, in recognition of their superior, dedicated, 

9 and vital service to our Nation. 

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

11 award described in subsection (a), the Secretary of the 

12 Treasury (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 

13 strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and 

14 inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary. 

15 (c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 

17 gold medal under subsection (a), the gold medal 

18 shall be given to the National Museum of African 

19 American History and Culture of the Smithsonian 

20 Institution, where it shall be displayed as appro21 priate and made available for research. 

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

23 Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should 

24 make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) 

25 available for display elsewhere, particularly at other 


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1 locations and events associated with the Buffalo Sol2 diers. 

3 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

4 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

5 bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 

6 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at 

7 a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, 

8 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

9 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

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

11 this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 

12 of title 31, United States Code. 

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

14 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

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

16 SEC. 6. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 

17 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 

18 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 

19 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 

20 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 

21 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 

22 by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro23 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 

24 vote on passage. 

Æ 


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